My father would get up early and drive almost an hour back to our hometown for work, and then drive back up to the lake again at the end of the day. A sacrifice I did not understand until I got older. He was a kind and quiet man who considered his wife and children and their happiness. He would then put on his swim trunks and with soap, shampoo and towel in tow, we would walk together to the lake. It was common then to take your bath at the lake. People were not pollution savvy in those days. It was always a special time with him and sometimes my sister and mother came along too. My father was a strong man, the young teen males loved to try to push him down in the water. It was a fun game and my father was always king of the mountain!! It was so much fun to watch as he warded off their attacks left and right!! They loved it and my father did too. I tried to jump in on the fun, but my father would say “you are too little, you will get hurt”. Although, he did play with Gwen in the water and she loved it.
Jousting time
At Peach Lake as a baby with soda bottle
I wonder what I am thinking? LOL
Dad with Gwen playing, I am in background trying to join in!
Two future bathing beauties in the making!
Grandma Nickels at the Beach
After Dad's jousting time, he would go over to the dock where I would jump to him and he would catch me. I would then swim over to the wooden rickety stairs and do it all over again!! I was like a fish in water my mother used to say. We would then swim out to the float. Women wore bathing caps in the water. I always wondered why that was. I guess they were concerned about ear infections, but also it took a while for hair to dry, so it was a way to save your hairdo. We also belonged to a swim club in Tarrytown in my early teens, and I believe they insisted on caps to keep hair from clogging the drains.
Tarrycrest Swim and Tennis Club, Tarrytown, NY
Tarrycrest Swim Club
bathing caps were a must when swimming in those days
Dad relaxed this may have been taken at Williamsburg?
Mom at the Lake
Spring break in Florida
One time when I was quite young, I wandered over to an area at the lake that had plants and such. My father came over to get me and when I came to him, I had leeches all over my legs and feet. I was bleeding and my mother almost fainted and was hysterical. My father had the presence of mind to find some salt and spread it all over my legs and feet and the leeches fell off. What a trauma.
I loved my Dad.. here is a card I handmade for him, he enjoyed golfing. It you double click on the picture you can read the sentiments!
After our swim/bath time we would walk back to our bungalow and enjoy dinners such as fresh sweet corn on the cob and beefsteak tomatoes and cucumbers from the outside Farmer’s stands. We used corn picks as you see in the picture to hold the corn, I thought they were neat and ended up getting them when Mom didn't want them anymore. I used them until they rusted out from age!
Finished off with grilled hamburgers, hotdogs, chicken and the like, it made for a delicious dinner. Sometimes we would have a cool summer pasta salad or my Mom’s awesome potato salad, and maybe deviled eggs. In my opinion there is nothing like fresh produce from the country. A few times a year we would pack up a dinner and eat just over the bridge in a treed area with picnic tables.
One of my favorite things to do in the summer was to hunt for fireflies. At night the little bugs would light up the sky like a fairy land and my father would make me a glass mason jar and punch small holes in the top so the fireflies when caught could breathe but not fly away. I would put grass in the bottom and sprinkle a tiny bit of water on the grass. I can still picture my mother and father clasping their hands together to catch the lighted bugs for me. I was fascinated with them and would watch them on my end table for hours in my little jar. In the morning they didn’t look half as intriguing. They just looked like sad little black creepy bugs with red spots on them, and I would let them go. Years later when I was grown and had children of my own I purchased a little electric jar with lights inside that looked like the one I caught my “magical friends” at the lake. If you are interested you can contact http://www.ohiowholesale.com for one.
©PEACH LAKE MEMORIES 5/21/11
Peach Lake Memories is a 15 Chapter book with vignettes about my childhood memories. It is copyrighted. Please ask for permission before using any information in my book. Thank you .. donnatrex@yahoo.com
No comments:
Post a Comment