Evening on the lake

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Evening has fallen on Lake Murray in Chapin, SC. The stillness is punctuated by fireworks around the lake. Lake Murray’s official 4th of July fireworks occurred on Saturday evening. We viewed them from my brother’s boat in the middle of the lake near Dreher Island State Park. Nonetheless there is a staccato of firecrackers, Roman candles and skyrockets this evening that breaks the lovely stillness of the lakeshore. It’s still warm but very comfortable as I sit on the porch and listen to the laughter of cousins, my brother, sister and our mates. God only knows when we’ll all gather again. Family times are special and the past few days have been remarkable for us. Mom is 84 and it’s really great that she’s still healthy and with us. I love summer nights. I love the warm night air. Deo gratias!

Lake Murray

We’ve been spending the last few days in sunny South Carolina thanks to the hospitality of my brother and his family. It’s been thirteen years since our last visit to Lake Murray. It is a lovely lake and a wonderful experience heightened by the fact that it’s something we don’t get to do as much as we used to. Eleven us of sharing the same home, waterfront, dock and water-craft. We’ve spent an entire summer in Western New York where we’ve been hard pressed to have two consecutive days of sunshine. Here the sun is present everyday and the air temperatures hover in the mid-ninety’s and water temperatures in the high eighties. Mom is with us too. We’re all getting older but Mom is the oldest at eighty-two. She’s been a little sick and she’s getting frail. We spent many summers at the ocean as youngsters and Mom was there swimming and watching us to make sure we didn’t wander too far into the Atlantic surf. Now we her children watch her to make sure that her needs are met. It’s great to have her along. It’s great too to be with our immediate family. It’s been a half-dozen years since we were on a family vacation. Our family, my brother’s family and my sister and her husband too. This is a special time and one that I’ll remember for a long time.