‘I think that this visit to Maine has been my most enjoyable,’ Billy B. said with a wink.

‘Could it have been the Lobster Roll from Red’s Eats in Wiscasset,’ Jane asked?

‘I think my favorite part was the Maine Beach,’ Brock announced!

‘My favorite was the ghost of the old pre-civil war house,’ Marcy said with a shudder.

‘Well, the sailboat excursion was my fave with the opportunity to talk with the Captain for most of the two hours that we were on the ocean,’ Aaron said.

‘I like my Lighthouse Tatoo very much,’ Billy B. grinned.

I wrote in my Travel Journal and sweet Emily came to visit me once again,’ Jonathon mused.

‘I thoroughly enjoyed the breakfast at the little cafe in Bath and the Bakery that is next door has the most spectacular pastries that I have ever tasted,’ Jane said.

‘The Lighthouses were unparalled and the granite dock was treacherous,’ Brock noted.

‘Big Girl and Puddin made the trip delightfully funny and exciting. The stories of their many adventures were amazing,’ Billy B. said with a hearty laugh!

‘We had a Fecking wicked time,’ said Brock.

‘I can still hear the bald eagle screech,’ Aaron said.

‘I still taste the fried oysters that we had in Camden…and my o my what delicious Dirty Martinis,’ Billy B. exulted!

Suddenly came a knock at the front door. ‘Who could it be on a quiet Sunday afternoon, Marcy asked?

‘My lord help us…it is Puddin and Big Girl,’ Brock said with a wicked grin.

Today I was in Eldorado and I saw the Town & Country Parade. Town & Country Days were a big celebration when I was a youngster in Eldorado 60 years ago. I vividly recall the preparation of converting the town square into a Carnivale Pavillion. The Cake Walk was one of my favorite pastimes…once I won a cake. As I looked among the joyful faces I sought a face that I recognized. Then it occurred to me that it had been 48 years since I resided in Eldorado and that if there were still people I had once known they might think…who is that old fellow?

The passion and beauty of a small town is unparalleled. While those who perceive themselves to be a bit urbane the reality of our planet is that many of us come from rural areas, villages, and hamlets. Communal celebrations are vital to us. Our kids all know each other and our parents are bound by the cords of community.

Living in Eldorado was to be a part of something bigger than myself. It had the feel of the big city and my backyard at the same time. Folks did not have money as their prime motivator. There were times like the Town & Country Days when everyone from Eldorado knew what they were all about. Heart and home and church and family. As well as the joy of all kids…free candy…

This year in Maine or last week…we had the unique experience of sailing for a two-hour tour. I do not believe that any of us had ever been on a sailboat previously. We set out from Booth Bay Harbor. It was an evening sail which made it all of the nicer.

A different world is sailing on the sea. I soon forgot my cares of the land lover. The gentle swaying of the schooner and the hoisting of the massive sails caused me to feel a bit of what the sailors of old felt as they made their home on the water. The culture is different than ours for the sailboat crew. The words are different and when spoken are heeded quickly. All of the crew were barefoot and with good reason…how are you going to climb the rigging with shoes on?

Artificial melts away. There is hope and peace and contentment on the water. The petty cares of who has the most money or possessions are lost in the grandeur of the majestic experience…

We have just returned from a wonderful Maine Holiday. Having Brock and Marcy join us this year made it the most special of our six visits to the Pine Tree State in the past 14 years. We stayed at Graywoods just about a mile from Bath. Graywoods has majestic scenery and a sense of peace and isolation. The beauty of the manor was unparalleled and we felt the love and laughter that had been and I am sure still is being enjoyed in its confines.

The most memorable adventure was our excursion on a sailboat. The Captain was from Illinois. The adventure was infectious. The memories are endearing.

Our dear friend Emily joined us once again and made our visit all the more special. She has such a lovely and winning personality and she picks up card games quick. Maine teaches me what I should be and how to not take myself or life so seriously. There is a beat to Maine and it is regular and measured and symphonic.

‘I like bells, ‘Puddin said.

‘I like bells too, replied Big Girl.

‘What a splendid bell this is,’ Puddin exclaimed!

‘At home, Mother will never allow me to ring the dinner bell which she calls a cowbell,’ Big Girl sighed…

‘Do you think some cows would come if we rang this bell, Puddin asked with a slight smile?

Clang…Clang…Clang peeled the large iron bell over looking at the ocean.

‘That was super fun Big Girl said, as the massive bell rang over the woods and ocean.

Moo…said the cow as he lazily walked up to Puddin and Big Girl…

As a kid, I often heard others older than me about a particular glass called a tumbler. I thought that was a cool name as I equivocated it with the act of tumbling. In fact, a derivative of the title is a glass that you could not keep from tumbling over while another meaning is a glass that has a weighted bottom and thus could not be turned over. I wonder if we do not drink out of both Tumblers at times?

Labor Day will soon be over and the summer of our laughter and play will close. We will be sorrowful for a moment until we look just ahead of us and there is fall in its autumnal glory. Suddenly it dawns on us that although summer has gone and life has changed…there is beauty and wonder ahead.

A snapshot is what we live in. It is our reality but it is frozen in time. Each photo seems to be our life in total…until the movie continues.

Have you heard it said that we make plans and God laughs? Soon the leaves will fall and the air will become crisp and Pumpkin Spice Coffee is already available. We Old/Young people think that we have all of the answers to life’s persistent questions because our perspective is so myopic. The massive and mighty trees that I enjoy photographing in the Woods worry not. Their leaves grew out a hearty green and were plenteous…and then they fell to the ground in a swirling eddy of air. Then the cold comes and the bare limbs and the frost touches the great oaks. The trees worry not…they know that spring is coming…

When the fire ravages and the woods suffer and they lose many of their family…then the seeds deep in the earth sprout with new life…

There is a third type of Tumbler that when pushed moves away from the force of the push and then comes back to the center due to its shape…much like the old child’s punching bags that when you hit Bozo The Clown he might go to the floor…but he came immediately back up to his standing position…smiling…

‘Well, this is it…September 1,’ said Billy B.

‘If we do not go to Pounds Hollow in the next 3 days and this day is over halfway gone…we will have to wait until Memorial Day for a swim,’ Jane said.

‘I was hoping we could take a final summer swim before we set off for Maine next week,’ Chet said with a sly grin.

‘This year we shall see a whale and drink ale, said Neva J. with a lusty laugh!

‘I will pack the merlot and the hot dogs…the weather is fall and a swim should be invigorating, Neva J said.

It was excellent at the Lake. The kids were laughing and the old folks were frolicking. It was a treat to relish the gifts of the Hollow for the last summer swim.

‘I found one of Aunt Vema’s old art books and all of the women in the photos were nude. They were posing…and I found it very interesting,’ Billy B. said academically.

‘You don’t say…all nude…indeed that would be educational,’ Chet remarked as he sipped his Merlot.

‘My Aunt is an artist in Maine and she told me that when she was a young woman she had swam in the nude and they called it ‘Skinny Dipping’…she said that once you do it you will never forget it, Jane said with a chuckle.

‘Dad had an old Nudist Camp magazine in his desk drawer and when I looked through it and realized that there is nude…and then again there is…nude,’ Chet said with a chortle.

Once you have seen it…you can’t forget it,’ Neva J commented as she opened another package of Oscar Mayer Weiners…and Chet took one directly from the package and placed it on a hot dog bun.

Our Intrepid Traveler decided to swim to the far bank of the lake and see what was over the next hill. As they climbed the hill they were amazed to discover another lake that was surrounded by trees and then they heard laughing and giggling and what appeared to be youngsters playing water tag. There in the chilly water were their teachers and the principal…naked…and apparently loving it! This was the most memorable and educational class of the year and was a recurring subject of conversation in Health Class…