FROM WHERE I SIT   Neighborhood Fourth of July July 4, 2012       pat spilseth

This is the place to be on the Fourth of July.  Much like many small towns in Minnesota, my neighborhood has established a great tradition.  Kids, grandkids, aunts, uncles, and grandparents come from far and close by to be here on the Fourth.  Flags fly from every mailbox in our neighborhood; loud patriotic music is piped from speakers encouraging biker riders to round Casco Point at breakneck speeds; people dress in patriotic colors , and  kids race to the candy site...it’s another annual Fourth of July celebration on Casco Point.

Several neighbors are decked out as Uncle Sam, colorful residents appear with tall top hats and flag sun glasses. Gals dress themselves in flag shirts and sparkling T-shirts with patriotic necklaces in glittering stars.  Kids are the big attraction: this is THEIR event of the year!  Every kid from teeny babies in strollers to little ones with training wheels and the almost-teens, decorate their bicycles and wagons with flags, hats, sunglasses and patriotic shirts and shorts.

We know how to celebrate in this neighborhood!  This year a wailing fire truck was filled with kids, sweating adults waving fans, and resident dogs.  Several smiling junior Miss Casco Pointers rode in a convertible with mom and nana.  We were among the many appreciative neighbors who arrived early to set up lawn chairs for perfect parade viewing.  The neighborhood’s presence is counted on by all the parade participants.  We clap and yell, flinging candy at the participants and offer rolls and cooling fans to beat the heat and humidity.

This was the hottest, most humid Fourth of July in memory...and we’ve been celebrating JULY FOURTH in this manner for over thirty years.  The party planning began with long-time residents whose grandparents lived on the Point.  Today, it’s been passed on to younger moms as our kids grew out of the bicycling and candy fighting stage of life.  Moms still push babies in strollers with flags fluttering.  Kids still decorate their bicycle wheels with red, white and blue crepe paper strung between the spokes of the wheels; golf carts and convertibles continue to feature pretty girls, hovering parents and doting grandparents.  Even a horse marched in the parade a few years back.

Lawn chairs are set up early on

Casco Circle

for neighbors to view the parade, drink coffee and eat rolls.  Neighbors here enjoy getting together.  It’s a perfect time to meet new neighbors as well as reacquaint with grownup neighbor kids.  We toss appreciated candy at the parade participants who pedal around the Circle numerous times to collect more candy into their bulging pockets and mouths.

The parade is an annual event all of us look forward to.  It’s a valued Casco Point tradition.  Several neighborhood kids who have grown up on Casco Point now have children of their own who participate.  We love to see the resemblance of neighbors’ faces in their grandchildren.  This is Garrison Keillor’s Lake Wobegon country “where all the women are strong, all the men are good-looking, and all the children are above average.”

So many kids and relatives returned this year for the parade, swimming and fireworks, including our daughter Kate and our Mexican son-in-law Bernardo.  He turned out in an Uncle Sam top hat, red, white and blue sunglasses, flags and fan.  Kate, as always, loves to celebrate and arrived in a red, white and blue outfit.  Son Andy remembered his bicycling days on the Point and chuckled at the exuberance of neighbor’s grandkids.

This is a generous neighborhood that enjoys getting together.  Neighbors host an annual party of brats and hotdogs, potluck goodies and revelers who appear yearly to celebrate.  Lawn golf, volleyball, an open pool and some cooling lake breezes are always available.  Sparklers and fireworks are saved for the evening.  Cascading stars and exploding colors can be seen from at least four locations at our screened porch and dock.  Hundreds of boats, kayaks, water skiers, and floats make their way out to Big Island for parties while other revelers find spots on the various bays of the lake to view the exploding show once darkness falls.  We sit on the deck surveying the parade of boats jockeying for a position as they stream through the Narrows passage from the Upper Lake to the Lower Lake.  It’s a mish-mash of boats, their operators hoping to avoid a collision and arrest.  That would put a damper on the celebration.

July is the perfect time to celebrate the freedoms we enjoy here in the United States of America.  Independence Day, our nation’s birthday is important to remember.  I hope our children will always learn that our ancestors paid a price, often with their lives, for the freedoms we enjoy.  Freedom and independence aren’t gifts for people everywhere.  806