Another August has passed and again I have not seen the shooting stars that were promised. August is the month of the Perseid Meteor shower. I know , because I have been looking to the skies for many years and I have not seen the shooting stars for an equal number. Oh, for sure I have occasionally looked skyward and have seen some random object flying by, including on occasion shooting stars. But the last time I have seen the Perseids was probably 55 years ago, or thereabouts.
We were boys, we were normal boys of the early 60s, and it was commonplace for boys of that era to sleep out. We had large canvas tents with heavy wooden poles that would be pitched in our suburban backyards through out the neighborhood. The tents would be dampish and had a curious smell and would be hot as hell in the daylight, but at night we would hang out, staring at the sky before retiring into the tents. As the night cooled it would produce a clearer sky and it was at that time that I recall seeing the shooting stars. We would hang out for hours and there would be several each night.
I never stopped looking for them. Many years later I coaxed my son out in the middle of a winter night to see if we could see some during an anticipated meteor shower. We were rewarded with frost bite and a couple of glimpses of streaks in the clear night sky. My son traipsed off to bed much sooner than I, perhaps not quite sharing the enthusiasm of 2 AM in February . Oh, well.
I kind of miss the days when kids would put up a tent and sleep in the backyard. I think they were simpler and more enjoyable days for kids. I see some similarities to the kids next door, I see them out and about fishing, biking, running around. And so it was yesterday that on my return from my bike ride late into the evening that I just had to mention the youngest one to enjoy the remainder of the summer. He promised he would as he and his friend took off on their bikes into the twilight.
Today summer ends for yet another year. I hope your summer was as pleasant for you as mine was for me.
Oh,well there is always next year.