My greetings and love to ALL!! Here I sit at the end of my day, thinking of the events at home, and our always memorable 4th of July party at Mom and Dad’s house. We celebrated with a ‘braai’, South African for BBQ, on an unusually warm day – sunny, tank top weather, contrasted with the previous days of cooler weather and fireplace-worthy evenings.
I am missing being a part of the activities, but think back over the years of memories with fondness, and the expectation (and hope) that some things never change…
The night of the 3rd welcomed numerous kids (I heard 14 this year) to our home to spend the night, and walk to the parade down the street in the morning. The army of kids return from the parade about 11:30, noonish, with more candy than they need in a year, but willing to share with whoever asks. Walking tacos are the lunch of choice for the many, as parents and other church family begins to show up.
I think of the Cleavelands, Smiths, Strahans, Woodys, and many more. I can imagine the conversations I would be having with Diane and Cathy, as we ready the driveway for the party. I could be telling them about my journey thus far and my heart for the future, while getting caught up on their last 6 months!
The long tables sit in front of the garage, lined with the summer holiday foods – potato and pasta salads, broccoli salad, red-white-blue jello mold of the States, cookies, brownies, watermelon, and everything in between. The coolers full of ice and soda double as benches for those who can’t find an extra folding chair.
There may be music playing from the garage while the men grill their meat of choice for their families – hamburgers, hotdogs, bratwursts, steak, or chicken.
I remember that the shoes gather in piles outside the door as people traipse through the house to the bathrooms and kitchen, and that despite the fact we use Solo cups and paper plates, the dishes seem to still accumulate in the sink!
The pool is full of kids – resulting in the need to drain and refill the pool afterward to fully recover! Flips are practiced on the trampoline, in between games of ‘crack the egg’, with kids young and old alike. Meanwhile, the badminton tournament rages on, Seth and Greg’s competitive spirits at a high, while most of the women sit and stand around chatting and keeping eyes on the littlest ones. An ultimate Frisbee game will likely ensue in the neighbor’s yard among the older youth and young adults.
The dynamics have changed over the years as we’ve all grown older; when once I was a trampoline jumper and swimmer, I now primarily will take the chatting woman role, appreciating the friendships of those who used to be ‘Mom’s friends.’ Cathy S., Cathy D., Lynn, Diane, Julie, Janet… Now the little ones are the next generation – my niece, and my peer’s kids.
Around dusk, after food is mostly cleaned up, everyone begins making their way to the park for one of the best fireworks shows in the city. Eager kids go ahead to stake the spots and the adults follow behind. Several members of the party will stay behind at the house for various reasons – the need for an hour of quiet after the full day; to stay with sleeping babies, etc…
We settle down on our blankets taking up a decent chunk of curb, depending on the number of people, and wait for the show to begin.
“Oooh! Ahhh!” “Sweeet!!” “Did you see that one?” Whoops, crying baby or toddler, since it’s so loud directly across the street from launching point. I feel that even though I get older I still enjoy this part of the evening with the family.
After another great show comes another fabulous finale and we all comment on how Urbandale’s 4th of July Celebrations are the best! We walk the 15 minutes back to the house, along with a crowd of people, all thankful we are not a part of the traffic jam out of the area.
Watermelon and sparklers finish the evening out, maybe another glass of iced tea before the goodnights and goodbyes are said. I imagine most people will tell my family to have a safe trip to Tennessee tomorrow. Enjoy the vacation – see you when you come home! The fireflies twinkle their last few goodbyes.
Our family heads inside, glancing on the remaining dishes in the sink, usually to finish in the morning. Tonight, though, my guess is that they will get washed due to the early morning departure for my grandparent’s home.
I am missing home, my family, my church family, and the whole day of the 4th of July. And of course, the vacation at Grandma and Papa’s…
I love you all!!!
