“Beep, Beep, Beep, Beep” the sound of my neon alarm clock had woken me on a bright summer morning. It was a Friday in July, the week before tedious football started. This was the last chance for my friends and me to live up to the expectations of summer. We weren’t headed to just any place on this glamorous day; we aimed to the aqua, blue lake, whose water was as refreshing as a hose to flowers.

After a quick pit stop to a musky McDonalds, we traveled on the road for a brief hour and a half drive to Coldwater Lake. On the way there, we jammed out to the hits of summer and just had an enjoyable time. Therefter about an hour and forty minutes, we knew we should be getting close. Outside, we saw humongous green signs that said “Coldwater Lake.” The only problem was I had lost contact with Jacob, who at one point, went through a yellow light. Cautiously, I stopped at the red and lost contact with him. I tried to watch him for a while but lost sight of him. I remember pondering, “This is the longest light ever.” After another ten minutes, which felt like a lifetime, we were on Iyopawa Island. There were green golf courses filled with elderly men glaring at us. Finally, we called Jacob, he told us we had missed the turn some forty minutes ago. This was the only part of the trip that turned out not so fun. We swung around after getting off the phone and finally made it to the sunny shores of his cottage.   

When we reached the cottage, Jacob’s polite grandparents greeted us. They advised us, “Make yourself at home for the weekend, boys.”  I loved the way they spoiled us.  I loved it. Once we made a quick change of dry clothes, we uncovered the warm pontoon boat and were finally going to make it out on the cool water. The boat was drier than California in 2015; however, in a few minutes it was soaked. Unfortunately, this wasn’t Jacob’s boat to drench. On Friday Jacob’s parents weren’t there yet, so we maneuvered around on his grandparents’ boat instead of his. After seeking the waters for the “lake girls,” we settled in a shallow spot full of smooth rocks. We engaged in various events from polish horseshoes to water tackle football. After eight hours tiresome lake activities, we idled in for the night. When we docked the moist boat, a fragrant smell emerged from the grill. Don, Jacob’s grandfather, was making us flavorful, barbequed meat on the grill, where June, Jacob’s grandmother, baked a fruity, rich dessert. Once we finished the filling, mouth-watering dinner, we stormed back into the cottage. The moment we idled back to our rooms, we crashed into the feathery pillows.  

My eyes sprung open the next morning at 10:00 A.M. After a full night’s sleep, I was feeling wonderful. I awoke to the sweet smell of breakfast. “Ouch,” I yelped. That’s when I figured out I had forgotten to wear sunscreen after our day in the sun. The sharp, red burn covered my body. June questioned, “Forget sunscreen, Evan?” With my face was almost redder than my back, I squealed, “Yes, yes I did.” Thankfully, June owned some relief lotion that would sooth my throbbing pain. We snagged a quick, zesty bite to eat and headed back to the waterlogged boat. This time we headed out to a different destination: Marble Lake in search of the “lake girls.” Being connected to the lake of chains, Marble Lake was a possible destination. This is where I spent most of my summer days as a kid, since my parents own a place there. 

Idling in on our boat, we finally reached our destination after a couple hours. Enjoying the island life, we lost track of time. Before we knew it, we had to leave to go to back to Coldwater. The thought of leaving made me frown. On our way back we had a humorous time trying to teach Mikey to dive. I remember Mikey claiming, “I never learned to dive.” Though we were unsuccessful at it, we had an amusing time springing off the leathery boat at every profound lake in between. As the hours winded down, we had to go home unfortunately. This made us experience a roller coaster of emotions.  

Living in a world that is supposedly depressing and dark, I realize we need to take time out of our busy schedules to do something with our friends or family that is enjoyable. I remember my dad telling me, “In twenty years you’re going to regret the things you didn’t do more than the things you did.” This was one of the times that I’m happy I lived a bit.