Thinking of the Fourth

 

It was a good weekend for writing..and that meant stories from the Fourth. Funny, how I keep thinking of the past, and I have my doubts I could even keep up now. Naturally, this means alcohol will be involved. Although, I feel certain it will be a dry year this time around. 

But living in the midwest has given me plenty of sweet Fourth of Julys. Like the time I caught the flowerbed on fire with a Roman Candle. No way was I going to shoot into the street with a car passing by. And of course, barbecue...and everything that comes with it.

Yet, it's a time for everyone to be together so I had to write a little on the subject. which meant it needed to be a Brick Story. I was remembering back to a time when we did live on a military base. The MPs (now days it's stay off school property) told us to go to the playground if we were going to shoot off fireworks. Of course, we did plenty of fireworks on our street as it was getting twilight. Soon enough, more kids gathered and like good parents we went to the playground with ours.

It might have been the year that the boys realized somebody might not be a girl much longer. She had her punk to light her airplane and butterfly fireworks. She gracefully bent and I noticed a whole line of sixth-grade boys behind her watching her ever so cautious. Because if she knew they were watching her long legs in her short cutoffs, there would be hell to pay. But she didn't notice. 

Everyone breathed easy, and afterward, she was ready to go home long before it got really dark. I guess you could say the night of the Fourth puts you in a lull, walking the block, seeing all sorts of nature at work. Some good. Some bad. But it might be for the young. Although, it can get old quick when you feel like you're in a war zone. 

I hope my cough is gone by then.