Okoboji Memories

I sit looking across the smooth lake of East Okoboji. The early morning sun is shining down on the still waters...with only an occasional ripple from the light breeze. It is quiet, as the world has not yet awakened, even though the birds have been making it well known that a new day has begun.

Far off in the distance, you can hear the faint sound of a motorboat as an eager fisherman heads for his favorite spot. The early worm gets the fish....or something like that.

I am in awe of the beauty of God's creation. For a moment it feels like Heaven -but I remind myself - it is just Iowa.

For over 50 years, this has been the first scene to greet me in the mornings of my summer vacation. But during my youth, I was much too eager to get on with the day to fully appreciate the glory of it all.

I would spend hours swimming in the lake and playing in the sand. My Mom would pack a lunch, and our family would go out boating and not come back for hours. It was here that I drank most of the lake before I finally got up on water skis for the first time. As a reward, we stuffed ourselves on Arnold Park's famous candied apples, freshwater taffy and freezing cold nutty bars. If you were brave enough, you could take a ride on the rickety old roller coaster inside the amusement park.

At the end of the day, we'd eat fish sandwiches at the original Fisherman's Wharf, somewhat concerned that the decaying eatery might slide into the lake at anytime. We would watch the boats pass under the bridge that separates East and West Okoboji. My Dad would tell fish stories....with emphasis on the big ones that always seemed to get away. I would hang on his every word.

On Saturday nights, Mom in her fanciest dress and Dad - looking oh, so dapper in his nicest suit - would go out for dinner and dancing. Occasionally my sister, Glenda and I would put on our best church clothes and accompany them. We'd "shake our tail feathers" to the music of Dave Major and the Minors, Marilyn Maye and many other frequent entertainers of the time.

I am grateful for those memories - they are like an old movie that I replay over and over in my mind. How I wish I could actually relive those moments and spend more time with those who have already made their journey to the real Heaven. I hope for my Dad it's filled with smooth waters, great music, lush golf courses, and vast lakes filled with huge fish eager for the catching.

I now watch my own sons, with their families and significant others, carry on this family tradition of coming here every year for vacation. My grandchildren play on the same beach I did so many years ago. It is hard to believe how fast times passes and how quickly life goes by.

I bask in the warm comfort that my Dad, and my Mom, who joined him a few years back, are still watching over us all. I hope they know how thankful I am that they gave us this gift of "summers at Lake Okoboji".

Remember to be grateful........for memories....

Until we talk again........