June 2, 2025: The Golden Days

It appeared out of nowhere.

Recently, I finished organizing the garage. My yard tools hung in nice lines beside neatly stacked boxes. Plus — bonus — just enough room to pull the car in.

Then one afternoon, returning from work, I clicked the door button and rolled inside. And there it stood.

A giant slab of plywood leaning casually against the side wall.

What in the world?

Turns out, Sam is up to something. Back for summer break, he and a few friends have cooked up a project.

They bought the materials to recreate a game they played on campus. And today, I found them in the backyard taping off borders and spray-painting school colors.

The massive board now rests proudly on the deck table, drying in the sun.

I have to laugh. Kids add a certain energy to a home. When they return, they also bring noise, crumpled fast-food bags, mismatched shoes by the door, and a laundry pile that could qualify as a small mountain.

And yes, sometimes they bring plywood.

But every stray sock reminds me they’re here. I hear their footsteps on the stairs again, their laughter floating in from the next room.

These time-stamped moments won’t last forever, and a day will come when I’ll want to rewind to this exact version of them. It’s easy to think “coming home for the summer” is a guarantee, until the year they stop.

So, the days are numbered. But that only makes them more golden, giving an opportunity of loving these kiddos up close, even as the house turns upside down.

I can have a tidy garage later. Right now, I’ll take the mess and mayhem.

It’s not just another summer, this is one more I get to share.

And I’ll try not to hit the spray-painted game board when I pull in.