Dear Members and Friends,
For many of us, the season now beginning is one that promises a lighter pace and a softer tone. While this might suggest a period of less impact and influence, summertime has produced for me some of the most profoundly important events and memories in my life.
Gazing deep into the past and allowing previous experiences to float up to the surface, my mind begins to fill with images conjuring up powerful thoughts and feelings.
The vacation in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, where the broken down resort looked nothing like the pictures. Where we got to use paper plates all the time; where I caught a crawfish and turned it into my first pet. Where I saw my one and only UFO. Where the row boat seemed to spring a leak, but in fact it was me because I couldn't hold it till we got to land and we were always told never to go in the lake.
I recollect regular visits to the Jersey shore, where I almost drowned three times. Where I got two holes-in-one on the 18th, and thus two free games, playing miniature golf. Where I thought you stopped a power boat by simply turning off the engine, thereby causing a 10 foot dingy to arrive dockside straight on at 15 knots.
Endless days at home come to mind, where innumerable tennis balls were struck and where rain that closed the courts gave us the opportunity to play stick-ball. Where I watched Doug Crawford finish a match and attempt to jump the net, leaping way too soon, landing square on the top center strap, and being sling-shot nearly out of the court altogether. Where I learned the tearful heartbreak of losing and the exultant joy of winning. Where walking 5 or 6 miles with my friends just to go bowling was so much fun because it was 5 or 6 miles.
I remember the years at Ortley Beach where Amanda and Billy insisted the 61 degree water was "warm". I recall the boardwalk arcade where I soberly "educated" Amanda on the veritable impossibility of winning one of the gleaming mountain bikes on display, only to see a young boy minutes later do that very thing right before our eyes. Then there were the tuna fish sandwiches we made for lunch by the sea and the chili-dogs and cream corn we ate almost every night because dad didn't have much of a repertoire. The menu changed markedly as Lisa joined the family, but our fun stayed precisely the same.
Now that Amanda is a young lady and Billy not far behind, I think the summer times we've enjoyed have impacted their characters even more than their formal studies. I'm glad we've taken the time, as my parents did, because while the time doesn't last, memories do.
So with great anticipation I step into these next two months knowing that the experiences ahead, planned and unplanned, will be both fun and formative. No matter the location or the duration, may this season be for all of us the occasion of increased love for each other, deeper appreciation of life and a heightened faith in God.
From Reverend William J. Keane,
Senior Minister of First Baptist Church of Branford
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