Nothing Like that Summer G-R-I-N-D!

There’s nothing like summer to remind me how much I love water. As I began to think about this writing, I felt a little like the character Bubba from Forrest Gump when he began talking about shrimp. I love iced water, strawberry water (from Sonic), watering the flowers, watching children play in the sprinkler water, water skiing, pool water, lake water, and the best of all…watermelon. Watermelon, in my opinion, is a gift from God. It is one of my all-time favorite foods and, when summer rolls around, my mouth begins to water just thinking about it!

Watermelon and summer go together “like peas and carrots.” (Maybe I’ve watched Forrest Gump one too many times!) In fact, some of my earliest summer memories include watermelon. As a kid, one of my favorite things was having the juicy fruit running down my face, as siblings and cousins laughed together enjoying the treat on the back porch of my grandparents’ home. I remember my mom cutting into one of these green melons filled with reddish pink delight inside and sharing her favorite part, the heart, with me. Of course, she’s always shared her heart, but that’s a column for another day. I can remember my dad reaching into a large ice chest and pulling out a cool watermelon so large that I was amazed it had fit. I remember being terrified when I swallowed a seed, because my granddaddy told me how I was going to grow a watermelon in my stomach, and the vines would grow out of my ears! The day I discovered seedless watermelon, I thought I’d died and gone to heaven!

As I reflected on these thoughts, I realized that watermelon was just the sweetness of summer wrapped in memories—memories shared with family and friends…memories that make life sweeter by reminding me of those times when life slows down enough to enjoy special moments with ones you love. Memories are seeds that blossom when you share them down to the next generation. May your summer harvest be bountiful, and its fruits ever-sweet.

Until next time,
  ~ Karen

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