Back in 2000, SI's Rambi reminisced about celebrating the 4th with her family ....
WHen the boys were little, we would go to Indian Lake in Ohio, where Dan's parents have a summer place, for the 4TH. As it began to get dark we would take drinks and snacks, blankets, and lots of that Avon Skin So Soft that keeps bugs away, and get on their pontoon boat. All the other boats were pulling out of their docks and we left the cove,like a parade heading toward the other end of the lake, until there was just this giant mass of boats and people waving and yelling and honking at each other. We would drop anchor and sit and watch the sun finish setting, and twilight come on. The boats were so thick you could almost step from one to the other. Just as the boys would start whining and the chips ran out, one rocket would shoot straight up - it was time!
The horns blared, bells rang, people cheered.
And for half an hour, over us, reflecting on the water, and on my children's mesmerized faces, July 4TH magic happened.
When there was a particularly beautiful explosion, you blew your horns and cheered. CW loved to do this and we were always afraid he'd run the batteries down. Finally after the finale which never fails to leave me in tears, heart pounding, there is silence, and then slowly, everyone turns their boats for home. Through the now dark waters, through the silence broken only by the occasional rocket from the shore, we floated, the boys curled up on either side of me, and I knew this absolutely perfect happiness.
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