In the hot humid summer night, sometimes my thoughts turn to the simplicity of natural possibilities. What would life be like in a perfect world, removed from barriers of homophobia, racism, sexism, ageism, whatever-ism, and we could all be as on with the Creation? A place where one can enjoy themselves without limitation or foolish encumbrances of our traditional society.
The humidity is thick in the air tonight. My air conditioner in my apartment has not ceased running since arriving home. It's been a sluggish evening. Even my normally rambunctious cats are lying low, conserving their energy. Despite the despicable weather conditions, I love the summertime. Days constantly remind me of youthful moments passed: playing in the street until the electrical lamps on telephone polls came on, the smell of the air with its sharp, but sweet taste, the sight of fireflies buzzing about; days where the ice cream man's jingle could be heard blocks away and you went rushing into the house to grab whatever money you could find for a cold treat before his truck went around the block.
Adolescence brought different memories: staying out way beyond curfew, pushing the limits on that fine line between Saturday Night and Sunday Morning, driving all over the five county radius around Philadelphia, catching a buzzing in Valley Forge National Park, drinking in cemetery parties in the early hours of the morning, going to diners after parties, cruising for girls, muttering because we hadn't found any, creeping in the house at 5:00 AM, praying to God my mother would just let me skip church, dread that McDonald's had me on a short lease, scheduled to work on a Sunday!
College further loosened the reigns and heightens my blissful remembrance: steeling away at 3:00 in the morning to visit friends hours across the state. Driving to Pittsburgh, Erie, Punxsutawney, DuBois, State College, Lancaster, Philadelphia, all on whims, getting high of the summer nights, literally getting high in friends' apartment or getting drunk on grain alcohol concocted punches, driving to the Pinnacle in Holtwood to obtain a piece of peace watching sunrise over the valley on the Susquehanna River. Sharing kisses with partners, now long forgotten, tasting sweet passion, smelling life's potential on the horizon....
It's all different now! The years have flown by and I don't have much time to savor on the summer days. Days become mindless blurs warped into a single event. I don't reflect on the summer days of my 30s with fervor as done in my teens and 20s. Alas, quite stoically, I've become an adult. Yet tonight, on this evening where I can see the moon shine in all her glory, I recognize that despite my worries, my true lover, Sister Moon is waiting for one more dance in our summer gathering. Tonight I will steal upon the horizon and think fondly, then stand up, take her hand, and dance like we never parted. "Danse avec moi, mam'selle!"
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