By Vicki Scott
My age might be telling on me when I tell you that July seems to have arrived faster than usual.
My husband Alan and I still are in transition to a place in our lives of mass confusion. We spend about five days of the week in Dadeville at our lake house and two days in Glencoe and then wonder what the Lord wants to do with us next. Places change daily, and it is difficult for me to keep up.
The Fourth of July fell on a lake day. If one loves peace and quiet, do not go to Lake Martin on the Fourth of July. Many of our neighbors rent out their houses for such occasions. I would not like to do that, either. One of our lake neighbors decided to set off fireworks from his house a couple of years ago, and I heard it was a legendary performance. People now plan their holiday around his fireworks display.
Lake Martin has grown so much since we last lived in the area, but I do know that laidback and peaceful community comes back after the Fourth of July and Memorial Day weekend. I used to wish I could hibernate on such holidays, but I make do. The Fourth of July is not just a special day for our country; it marks a day in history for our lives, as well. Thirty-four years ago, Alan and I moved into our lake house on July 4.
Last Saturday, my younger brother and his wife invited me and Alan to his place in the country. He and his wife own a little over five acres of four-wheeler heaven. There are trails, hills and creeks galore, along with neighbors who share the same interest and land, so accepting the invitation would make a great getaway from the holiday mayhem. When we arrived, we took our place on the porch outside where we could eat and fellowship and wait our turn to ride.
I’ve been blessed two brothers. Both are younger than me and are very different. They remind me of Jacob and Esau from the Bible. Esau was born first but sold his birthright for some stew. I could see my four-wheeling brother doing that. He has the biggest heart of all three of us, but he loves his four-wheelers. He does not seem to care about material things or being in charge. He loves anything to do with outdoors.
My other brother – I will call him Jacob – is a computer science engineer who lived his life making deals with people. I could see him taking over the family birthright if it were possible.
In Sunday school, the teacher talked about opposites and how the opposite of high is low and the opposite of fat is skinny, but there is no opposite of God, because there is no comparison to God. Whatever is opposite to God would have to be equal to God.
When I compare my two brothers, they are equal to me in the love I have for them, but they are opposite in their way of life. In other words, I connected to what the teacher was talking about. I feel that way about my grandchildren too but cannot seem to explain it.
We thought we would just watch some fireworks at Kowaliga Marina on Sunday and then call it a night for this year’s July 4 festivities, but our son invited us to watch the legendary fireworks that our neighbor puts on with his crew. You know we had to because our grandchildren would be there, along with our daughter and her posse.
This was our first year to watch this event and we did not know when the fireworks show would start. So, we used leftover fireworks to entertain ourselves. It was obvious that others thought the same.
Our neighbor started his fireworks show promptly at 9 p.m., and what a show it was! There were lights from boats as far as we could see. I’ve never seen so many fireworks in my life! There were at least five times when we thought they did the finale, only to see even more action. It was amazing! We know our neighbor is proud of his display, and we are proud of him. I look forward to many more years of this event.
Amid our mass confusion with our Dadeville-to-Glencoe and back routine, we are proudly guided by family, specifically our grandchildren. They are growing so fast, and we do not want to miss a thing. They are 90 percent of why we are trying to move back.