A full day’s work done

My husband invites me on a boat ride

He knows it is my favorite thing at the cottage

When the wind is down

The waters are calm

And the fiberglass hull of the boat

Skims effortlessly across the surface of the lake

I always feel like I am flying

We pass houses along the shore

An impressive mansion being built just a few houses down

An executive for Corning

Spending 13 million dollars

On a single home

The cottage a far less splendid affair

But absolutely perfect

Only 60 feet of beach front

It appears tiny when you pull up from the road

But has definite curb appeal on the lake side

Its wall of gleaming windows surrounding a large downstairs porch

Used as much as any of the smaller rooms in the house

With pocket doors to save space

And only a few small single room air conditioners for the hottest days

Cheerful window treatments

Old photographs framed on one wall

Every ounce of space used well

Every detail carefully considered

There are just two bathrooms

And a very small kitchen

Three small bedrooms

One of them a bunk room with four bunkbeds

And stairs that double as drawers

But there is a large dining table

Where generations of Brighams and then Fisks sat around

Eating

Playing Phase 10

And laughing

This table has seen so much laughter

I’m so glad I got to see Jonathan’s grandparents here

When they were still alive

His grandfather eating his morning oatmeal on the front porch

His books lining the bookcases along the stairs

His grandmother forgetting the rules of the game

Laughing at herself

Her eyes twinkling

Jonathan’s parents work hard to keep the cottage running

A hospitable place for family to visit in the summer

The grass is neatly trimmed

The spiders kept at bay

The weeds pulled

Laundry lines hung

And visiting ducks fed

So many cottages and mansions along the shore

Like Monopoly pieces

The boats in each dock bobbing gently

As if they were a child’s bathtub toys

The trees stately and beautiful

Many of them quite old

I tear up as we speed along

The tears flying backwards off my face

We are tasting empty nest this week

Jonathan and I

Both of us working

But just us

The kids flew home yesterday

They aren’t really kids anymore I know

A friend said this stage would feel like dating again

And it already does

I like it

More than I thought I would

Getting to know one another again

Sharing about our day’s work

Our ideas for the future

Last night we talked about the kids

Which led us to praying for them

We have never really had control over them

We just lived with the illusion of control for a time

Our dreams for them

Our worries

Laid at the feet of the only one who can truly do anything about them

The sun is getting lower in the sky

It takes a long time to set at the lake

Which is just one more thing to love about this place

The water is sparkling like diamonds

As the sun reflects off the surface

I treasure our time here

Glad we are together

As close to a perfect place as I have ever found

Grateful for the moments we have together

For the memories that tie us together

The history we have shared

This place seems to strengthen those bonds

Reminding us of what is important

And what is merely passing

The sun has finally set

Its last rays turning the hillside into a silhouette

As one day comes to a close

And another is set to begin