Sounds of Summer

Tonight is my last night up north. It was my last late night boat ride and the last time I will be able to look out in the middle of the night at the moon hanging above the water until next year. It is always kind of sad. It seems like just yesterday I was making my first trip of the season up.

Summer is that special time when you, especially a student, have 3 solid months to become. You can start fresh. You can get involved in new hobbies and pick up the ones you left behind last August. Those three months are the times when you should be drowsy from the heat and stuffed because you ate too much sweet corn and licorice (or maybe that is just me). These precious days of summer are that transition time from the end of one year to the beginning of another. A time when everyone changes a little and gets sun burnt a lot.

Tonight, I am aware that my three months of becoming are nearing its end. I love the sound of crickets and of loons. Once September comes, those sounds begin to disappear, and school starts up again. Growing up in West Michigan, one of my most favorite sounds of summer is that of seagulls gawking above crashing waves. Seagulls seem to be everywhere in the summer around West Michigan; the mall, tennis courts, on your swim raft. They can be annoying, I know. They are kind of pushy, evil creatures, but they have a lot of vigor and I like it. What I like even more is how they fill the beaches during summer. Any beach you go to, there they will be. The most beautiful sight is when they are flying low over waves. They aren’t necessarily graceful birds, but I am not a graceful human, so I like them. And I like how they faithfully come into our lives here every June.

And after this week, I will be back in Indiana where the seagulls are few and far between.

One of my other favorite sounds of summer is that of music. Summer brings in its own special kind, and every summer there is that defining song. When I got out of school in May I really enjoyed the song "American Honey" because it so described my feelings about this time of the year. I especially liked it because it talks a lot about remembering childhood times and great summers of the past. I love how it talks about the race of life. It seems like the older you get, the less time you are able to sit back and listen to the seagulls because life is not as innocent as it once was as a child. I think it is important to sit back and regain that childhood innocence. The lyrics go:

"She grew up on the side of the road
Where the church bells ring and strong love grows
She grew up good, She grew up slow
Like American honey

Steady as a preacher, Free as a weed
Couldn't wait to get goin', But wasn't quite ready to leave
So innocent, pure and sweet, American honey

There's a wild, wild whisper blowin' in the wind
Callin' out my name like a long lost friend
Oh I miss those days as the years go by
Oh nothing's sweeter than summertime, and American honey

Get caught in the race of this crazy life
Tryin' to be everything can make you lose your mind
I just wanna go back in time, to American honey"

So, goodnight Minising Point and the beauty of another summer at the lake. Thanks for all of the memories.

Until next summer…