Summer's End

                                                             
                                    When summer gathers up her robes of glory,
                                     And, like a dream, glides away.
                                                                         ~ Sarah Helen Whitman

           

Now it is September, and summer is at an end.  The lake is strangely silent after Labor Day's last hurrah... Gone are the tiki lights, the smell of burgers on a grill...the buzz of jet skis and the laughter of revelers.  The boys and girls of Summer have gone, and emptiness has taken their place.  Sun-bleached memories are all that remain here...

                         

In the village, colorful signs shout gaily from windows: BACK TO SCHOOL SALE! Pencils and pens magically appear on store shelves, where lately sunscreen stood.  Reams of paper abound, and notebooks elbow folders in overcrowded bins.  Book bags and lunch boxes loiter in the aisles, trying to fit in.  Tee shirts and swimsuits are pushed aside to make room for cardigans and sweaters. Nerves are frazzled and cash registers ring...If you close your eyes, you can almost smell the books...

                                                                       

                                 

Fall semester begins.  Chattering children fill bright yellow buses, heavily laden with backpacks.   Fights are fought, new friendships are made, old friendships are renewed. Schedules are scrutinized and teachers are discussed.  Teeth are ground along with gears as the drivers learn their routes.  The days are surely shorter now...
                                                   
                                    

Summer is at an end, Autumn is around the corner, and School is in the air...