Night Swimming on Long Pond
Greetings to one of my most favorite periodicals! My name is Lauren Craig and my family and I have been summering on Long Pond for seven years now. What began as an invite to our friend’s beautiful lakeside seasonal home quickly turned into us renting it for a week (sometimes two!) each summer.
Throughout the years, like many of your readers, we have had the blessing of watching our children savor the joys of summer in the Belgrade Lakes region. It’s nothing short of nostalgic bliss every time we cross Castle Island Camp bridge.
Truth be told, I want to live in a world that is Belgrade Lakes — all the time, every day of the year. Alas, it is not to be. But perhaps that’s what makes it so uniquely special for all of us? This unbridled treat of sunshine, lakeshore and lazy days is most appreciated when it’s doled out in loving measured spoonfuls. But I digress…
As a homeschooling mom of two (now) teenage boys, I have the pleasure of educating them and watching them learn and grow. Last year for one of our creative writing assignments I recounted my own experience on Long Pond and I wanted to share it with you and your readers, if you feel so inclined to print it. I call it “Night Swimming on Long Pond.” I’d be willing to guess many of your readers have been in a similar happy predicament.
Well, thank you for your time in reading this, and I hope you enjoy my little passage.
God bless you — and see you on the lake!
Kind regards,
Lauren Craig
I stood at the end of the creaking, aluminum dock, scanning my eyes across the sapphire blackness of the lake. Even in the dying embers of a Maine August the night was remarkably warm. The heady scent of pine needles and cedar mulch hung in the quiet, comforting air. Above, the vastness of space with all its planets and stars twinkled and winked and beckoned me to do what I had come to do. In the far-off distance a loon’s forlorn cry pierced the soft night sky. I listened as it echoed its way across the glassy surface.
Looking down at my restless feet, I felt them aching to be freed from the bumps and divots of this metallic platform. I peered over the edge of the dock into the ebony water below. How different it looks at night! Is it warning me to stay put or tempting me to jump in?
I knew the answer. I desperately wanted to slip into the quietude, to feel the smooth cool water swallow me in one swift, slicing dive.
Mind you, these decisions aren’t lightly made. Night waters are black holes of thrilling mystery. That same gurgling happy lake in the daytime has now been transformed into a deep, dark horse that only the brave dare ride. But, like the fleeting miracle of a northern New England heatwave, this placid nocturnal paradise will dissolve just as quickly as moonlight through the depths.
“Come on, boys. Grab your suits and towels.” I threw the words behind me to my two equally curious adventurers who were awaiting a verdict. “We’re goin’ in.”
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