Like Strawberry Whine

Well, I did it. I turned the big 3-0. Just another day, another 24 hours, and it came and went, just like any old weekday.

I didn't have a break down, fall into a deep depression, or any stereotypical response to surviving in this world for another full decade- no, not me. I simply ran away. And it was great.

We drove 4 hours to Michigan to my Grandma's cottage, which is now my aunt's cottage, and spent 2 whole days just living. There are no phones, no cable, not even a VCR that works. You swim, you suntan, you go out on the lake in a slow-ass pontoon, and you grill. It's fabulous. There's no shower, no hot water, but thankfully, indoor plumbing. When my great-grandfather built that place by hand, he had enough common sense to install a toilet. Thank God.

Evan was thrilled. He's only been up there a few times, but to a three year old, the ability to throw rocks into a lake as long as he wants is equal to heaven. He sobbed hysterically when it was time to go, and asks frequently when we are going back. Soon. I can't wait.

The part about running away to the cottage is that it is a way of running backwards in time. There have been no major updates, no renovations, no keeping with the times. You walk into a wood-paneled, 4 room cabin where the kitchen still has an icebox, the family area still has a coffee table where the drawer is a hidden record player, and there is green and white formica tile throughout. The chairs are vinyl so you can use them in wet swimsuits, the windows have pins to keep them open. The original door still uses a skeleton key, which cannot be copied. You walk into a time warp, and you never want to leave when it is time to go.

We spent many weeks and weekends there growing up. You think about that a lot while you are shoving your 30-year old fat ass into a tankini, thinking how you wish your thighs didn't touch when you walked down to the beach. I used to skimp around in a 2 piece and thought I looked terrible- when I was 15. God, what I wish I knew then! So, I did a lot of fantasizing about being a smidge thinner by the time I came back in addition to reminiscing about all the fun we had growing up there.

I have to admit that I only became Misty-eyed once, while driving alone to the store in the beautiful woods of Michigan, while listening, of course, to country. The song that came on was a favorite in college, when I was head over heels in love, passionate about just about everything in life, thin, adorable, and energetic. The song hit me hard- I will never be "young" again. So I sang loudly, got a little choked up, and then went on enjoying my weekend and looking forward to what the next decade brings me.

So, I leave you with the lyrics to Deana Carter's "Strawberry Wine".

He was working through college on my grandpa's farm
I was thirsting for for knowledge and he had a car
I was caught somewhere between a woman and a child
When one restless summer we found love growing wild
On the banks of the river on a well beaten path
Funny how those memories they last

Like strawberry wine and seventeen
The hot July moon saw everything
My first taste of love oh bittersweet
Green on the vine
Like strawberry wine

I still remember when thirty was old
My biggest fear was September when he had to go
A few cards and letters and one long distance call
We drifted away like the leaves in the fall
But year after year I come back to this place
Just to remember the taste

Of strawberry wine and seventeen
The hot July moon saw everything
My first taste of love oh bittersweet
Green on the vine
Like strawberry wine

The fields have grown over now
Years since they've seen a plow
There's nothing time hasn't touched
Is it really him or the loss of my innocence
I've been missing so much

Like strawberry wine and seventeen
The hot July moon saw everything
My first taste of love oh bittersweet
Green on the vine
Like strawberry wine