I miss summertime in the country as a kid.
Grandma's sun tea was always the right amount of syrupy-sweet. All the movies on G5-20 pulled in from that giant satellite were the best. We could play outside even after the street light came on because we were with family & didn't have school. We'd be outside from sun up to sun down, & didn't care about smelling like "outside," nor did we ever get too tired for hide-and-go-seek. And mamas always said yes when we asked to go stay with our cousins in "The Hill."
I loved the sleepovers. Even brought church clothes with me when I stayed on weekends. Went to church even though we stayed up all night & I'm fighting sleep while Reverend Peterson's heavy preaching got the entire congregation "hoopin' & shoutin'." We made it through the sermons unscathed. May have even caught the Holy Ghost ourselves a few times. And I even promised mama I wouldn't get my church dress dirty. Though I rarely made good on that promise once church was over & I hit grandma's backyard (where those bitter, dark berries I secretly indulged in hid).
But anyways, you know the type of broken promise I speak of. Like when summer ends & your cousins have to leave "the country" to go back home, promising to keep in touch with you via the landline. Perhaps those weathered scraps of paper with our phone numbers delicately scribbled on them got lost in the backseats of Cadillacs & Buicks. Months pass. Seasons change. But best believe, once summer hits-- we'll be back outside again racing by foot "in the net" like we never lost touch. And I'll always be that country girl that gets excited about a race.
[used this pic with these words because I totally just stole this from one of my cousins on FB. Thanks for sharing this, Consuela. And yooo, we look cute, Callie! And yes, that's Jj on the accidental photo-bomb. The family reunion brought back memories.❤]
When you think about your favorite summers as a child, what comes to mind?
