The 90’s were a unique time in history, for me they contained the bulk of my childhood. Every week without fail my younger sister, my dad and I would head out Saturday morning in the “mystery machine”, just like Scooby-Doo. Except we did not fight ghosts, it was really just a clever tactic to get my sister and I to play along with running errands with him all day. Some times though, the “mystery machine” worked in our favor. In the summer and spring the “mystery machine” was usually headed to DeCapua marina where our boat was docked.
Every summer since I can remember my weekends have consisted of spending time on our boat. The fist boat that I can remember well was a Four Winns 278 vista; it was a sleek average size boat with teal accents. The joke before selling it was four wins and two losses, because we owned the boat for six years and the last two years it had a lot of technical issues. We were unable to leave the dock for fear of breaking down while out, since it had happened before. Our current boat is a Tiara 270-sport boat with navy accents that scarcely leaves the dock but for different reasons.
The drive to DeCapua was a short one but an interesting one, the street used to gain access to the marina was tucked away in the bushes. Someone who was not looking for it could easily miss this street, it felt like a secret and I think that is why I liked it so much. Upon entering the street there is a downward slope, the whole street is engulfed in foliage. Trees and bushes line the road as you take a sharp right you see a row of houses. All these houses seam as if they have been taken from a Better Homes and Gardens magazine highlighting a nautical theme. The entrance into the marina itself is pretty tucked away amongst the trees.
This marina contains most of my childhood memories; it did not have much but used to set up a kiddie pool on the grassy area behind the boat. My most memorable moment from the marina, and maybe as a kid, was a late summer storm, it was just my sister and I on the boat. It was a nasty storm and those types of things tended to bother my sister. Being bothered by the storm my sister was hiding, then it began to hail. My dad had been on errands but as soon as he heard the storm and the hail he rushed back to the boat. After the storm had settled we went on a walk around our marina and the adjoining marina. I recall seeing a grassy cove hidden in the hill, I used to in vision the cove was home to mermaids so I referred to it as mermaid cove. On that day after the storm mermaid cove had produced a waterfall it was magnificent in my eyes. It was the closest thing to a waterfall that I had ever seen and I was mesmerized.
At the marina it seamed like time was standing still. My parents could forget about work and everyone was happy if only for a brief moment. The place was perfect the water was a crystal blue-green and always smelled of fresh cut grass and freshly pumped gas. To me this is what summer is, hearing seagulls squawk, motors starting, children laughing, bottles popping, and fog horns blowing. Summer is when kids are carefree and catch fireflies and climb trees. When time stands still and you drink in the moments that you will fall back on in times of need and trouble. These are the reasons you live day-to-day knowing that happiness is only a summer away and so easily obtainable when you just forget about the present and reflect on the past and future.
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