The Summer Bug

School is out once again for the summer. The children, of course are excited, all over everywhere.
On the other hand, the letting out of school brings back some memories for those of us, who have
been out for a while.

I think that for the first time in a while, the kids are going to experience a full summer. The school
year let out at the end of May, and will not re-open until August 27th. In prior years, it started a
little earlier. I know that it all balances out, but I always hated to see school start at the beginning
or middle of August. It seemed like the summer was cut too short.

Back in the old days, we didn't didn't start until after Labor Day, the first Monday of September. The
summers seemed longer back in those days, but then again, when you are a child, time seems to
move at a slower pace.

With the arrival of the school summer vacation, there is no more getting up early, no more tests, and
no more schedules. The only thing that I know that will be on the plate, is the famous complaint, "I
don't have anything to do. Of course, that will come at the end of the summer. In the beginning the
summer reading clubs, the swimming, and all that extra time playing will keep the young ones busy.

The one thing that sticks in my mind when I look back on summer vacations of the past is the cicadas.
You know those funny looking insects that come out of the ground, then eventually climb up a tree, to
leave their skin, or their shells, as we used to call them.

There was one summer when a few kids on the block were pouring water into the little holes in the ground
in order to make the cicadas come out of the ground, and then they were collecting them in a jar. I was
the younger of the bunch, so although I was not participating, I watched with great interest.

That group of bugs in the jar, through the years has just stuck in my mind. I think about them at the
beginning of the summer, and whenever I see their shells on the trees and the house.

The ones that I've always spotted are called the dog day ones. They'll come around every summer. On the
other hand, there is another group called the periodical ones that come every 17 years. Those are the
red eyed ones. The ones that I see on a regular basis have dark eyes.

They say that billions of the periodical cicadas in the Midwest are going to emerge after being underground for that 17
years. Texas isn't due again until about 2015. Personally I think the insects are cute, they don't bite,
and don't really cause any harm. The sad thing is that after being underground for so many years, they
only live above ground for about 30 days. Of course then, their main goal is to to produce a future
generation of cicadas.

Of course, I am glad for that. How else would I be reminded of those summers from long ago? Hopefully Amber's
summer will stretch like mine of yesteryear. I'll try and join her bandwagon, so that I can relish in it. The ones
that I've had as of late, have just flown by. It's time to slow them down, just a bit.

"Memories from summer past-
Are the ones that seem to last."



Mary Elizabeth Rumsey