I remember those special summer days when my parents would, by some mysterious method unknown to, but deeply appreciated by me, decide it was a beach day. My mom would pack a picnic cooler, we'd change into our swim suits & clamber in to the car for the long, sweaty ride to the beach.
Once there (there being a State Park Beach on mid-coastal Maine), we'd only pause long enough on the sand to shuck off our t-shirts & shorts, pile up our shoes on the corners of the blanket that marked off our territory claimed on a 6x8 piece of sand, and we were off & running to the water. We would generally not return to the blanket until our stomachs refused to be ignored anymore, dashing back just long enough to wolf down a gritty Wonder bread sandwich & wash it down with some sandy Kool-Aid before heading back to the water. Thankfully, my mom, unlike many moms of the day, didn't spend much time worrying about troublesome myths regarding how long you must sit out of the water after eating, and so we were not held in a beach-blanket purgatory like so many of the kids around us, who looked miserable and regretful that they gave in to their hunger & now had to wait an hour before venturing even to pop a toe into the water..
The best part of a beach day, in looking back on it now, was the end. Trudging back to the car, almost unbearably, happily, sun-dazed and exhausted. Tumbled & polished by the waves the the wind and the sand. Every step an effort, each foot feeling heavier on the land than it had ever felt before spending this time in the ocean. Stopping to eat at some roadside steamer joint for lobster or clams, fresh off the boat and cheaper than cheap. Big 55-gallon drums lined up outside & boiling away, just waiting to cook up your own, personal order to fill that cavernous hole carved by all of that swimming. Finally, climbing back into the car, sleepy & relaxed, to snooze & dream mermaid dreams.
Those summer days were the best summer days of all.
Age is all in the mind
12 hours ago
3 comments:
That was fantastically written. Reminded me of my youthful summers on the shore in New Hampshire. I went back a few years ago and the water was so cold my feet were numb after a minute. Have no idea how I spent hours in there as a kid. Hopefully my boys will enjoy some beach waves this year before the oil slicks over all the beaches down here in Florida.
ha, I am going to test my thought, your post get me some good ideas, it's truly awesome, thanks.
- Norman
I've been defamed! I never served Wonder Bread and Kool-Aid, I swear! Is it possible that you are confusing me with someone else's mother?
Back in the day, when weather was still what I remember as "normal," Maine summers were generally mild; but occasionally, usually in August, a few days of torrid, hot & humid weather would envelope us. And that, my daughter, was when we dropped the routine and headed for the coast.
It was fun, wasn't it? Sand in our sandwiches, sand in our shoes. Lugging the picnic cooler in, lugging the lawn chairs out. The cooler was lighter, but the chairs seemed heavier at the end of the day.
Now, a challenge: do you remember any of the family camping trips? My main memories: one tent emergency after another....
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