It was hot and blistering. The kind of heat that knocks you over as it clashes with the cool air when you walk out the front door.
I was taking my son over to our neighbor’s for a play date. We ladies could chat while the kids ran around playing in the sprinkler.
To our dismay, the kids were reluctant to play in the water. When we were little we never passed up a chance to run in the sprinkler, pausing to have popsicle sticks with all that frozen yummy colored sugar water.
Soon we started chatting about the sweet nostalgia of summer. The memories that creep into our minds when we drive by the sno cone shack, when we see the lightening bugs out, or see sidewalk chalk for sale at Target. Summer has a way of reminding us of the cut off shorts we wore when we were teenagers.
And then I thought, what future nostalgia will come to me 30 years from now when the playdates are gone?
Thirty years from now I’ll think of the summer memories I created with my mom friends.
I’ll remember the late nights I spent with my people. When we sat reminiscing with sangria in one hand, scrolling through Facebook with the other.
The times we came together to make sure our kids had a taste of summer like we did.
I’ll think about how we took them all to the same VBS so we could get our nails done together.
The chilled white wine we had on the deck while they ran around in the sprinklers like hyenas.
I’ll remember how you saved me when I forgot to make 3,453 cookies for the girl scout camping trip and you used up all your cash so I wouldn’t look like a failure.
Thank you for convincing me to try something new during those long summer days. For the pacts to never do this again. For the promises to never say that again. For running a 5K together. For that trip to Vegas when we left everyone else back home to fend for themselves.
Thank you for that special baby shower when we were surprised to be pregnant with number three. And for letting me cry on your shoulder without judging me because I was afraid of the unplanned.
How will I ever forget the playdates at the public pool? We girls towing all the swim gear so the kids would be entertained for hours while we read our guilty pleasures poolside
And probably my favorite: the late night walks when the sun doesn’t set until late. It was my chance to unwind from the day by talking with someone who would listen and understand.
When you look back 30 years from now, what memories will you have created with your mom friends? What will your Vegas trip be?