Water is vital to life and nobody knew it better than my mother, Olive. She couldn't stand to see someone, animal, vegetable or human thirsty. Way before it was a trend she would fix a big container full of water for drinking in the car. There was never not a pitcher ice water and iced tea in the refrigerator snuggled next to the resident ham, a Southern thing, maybe? Her flowers and tomatoes got watered often and the kitties had dishes of clean water in various spots around the house.
In summer, she'd send daddy to the store for a new plastic wading pool, always the biggest they had. He would tie it to the top of the car to get it home. Then, as soon as we could, (perhaps when daddy was at work?), we girls would hook the hose up to the kitchen sink and run it through the house out to the pool in the back yard. Ice cold water from the spigot on the side of the house wasn't good enough for Olive's girls, so we always made it toasty. We would get into our bathing suits, slide into the pool on our backs, and lie there, toes touching in the middle, like a human sundial. We'd pass the pineapple and coconut scented lotion, sip our iced drinks and enjoy warmth and sunshine to our heart's content. Then, empty out the water and repeat for as many days as we wanted. Oh, I should mention that, in case the neighbors thought we were loopy, mom always had at least one, or more tiny grandchildren in tow, in her care while older daughters worked. Of course local kids got in on the act, too.
Write your memories down. Even waiting a day will sometimes make it hard to remember exactly what happened or what sparked an idea. The Muse should not be denied. The Spring Journal - Joy of Water is where this one ought to be written. Wherever your water memories were formed, lake, ocean, creek or pond bobbin-olive productions has a journal waiting for you.
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