How I wish to be a kid again...

Don't get me wrong. There are definite things to being an adult that are great, but I wish there were some of those childhood innocence ideals that could be held onto forever. One of those is the first day of summer.

Remember the last day of school every year? How relaxed and full of possibility it was? I remember sitting in class, watching the clock tick down, waiting for that moment when the bell would ring and the halls would fill of students rushing out to start their summer adventures.

Summer was always a time of sleeping late, playing games, and exploring. In one of the neighborhoods we lived in there was a weekly puppet show. This is one of those things that can only be enjoyed through the eyes of a child. The kids around and I would make up games, running through the woods nearby, never fearful of other people but each monster we made up was real. You could believe the summer would last forever because it did. To a child, three months is a lifetime. It wasn't the nice weather, it was the idea of having no responsibilities, no place to go. All you had to worry about was getting home in time for supper.

I miss the feeling of that last day of school, the true start of summer. I enjoyed going to school and those responsibilities but nothing beat that feeling of possibility.

Was it the nice weather that made summer great? I don't think so. Nice weather still comes each year (although I like spring and fall more than summer), it just never falls in line with that last day of school anymore.

I posted a song the other night that reminded me of a boy I knew in high school. Thinking about him got me thinking about the last day of school. Even in high school, when summer meant hours of working to afford all those late nights out playing pool, going to the drive-in, and driving for hours on end, the last day of school still filled my heart with happiness. Maybe it was the fact it was him or maybe it was the fact it was the last day of school on my last summer before adulthood, or maybe it was a little bit of both, but I was ready to have fun and go against my strict logic.

As we were leaving school that fine, sunny day, he turned to me and asked simply, "Can I drive?" Now, this may not seem like a lot, but it really was. As I mentioned, I have strict logic reasoning. He didn't have a license and had never driven a stick before and I loved my car. But the sun made his eyes sparkle and of course, I caved in. I started my last summer of being a kid laughing and smiling and just enjoying his company. I still remember that mischievous smile of his and it lifts me up. We are lucky as human beings to experience things and make memories that we can carry for life. The feeling that day will stick with me forever.

1 Comments:

At 11:43 AM, CarpeDM said...

You are definitely an impressionist, Beth. I do remember what it was like to be truly free. I miss it.