im from mucky waterfront cottages

im from walks to mussel beach from the 1957 Holly camper my dad received when my great grandma passed

im from looking at the stars on private property or the roof

im from picking up baby geese off of the railroad tracks because my brother and I were convinced they wouldn’t make it on their own

im from lagoon beach drive, even though I was too young to remember it

im from “pop” not “soda” and cheese popcorn and mallow cups

im from Friday night football games, cheering no matter what the score

im from loud family parties, sparklers and what seem like illegal fireworks

im from sledding at vets, and many, many walks to betty’s

im from the Lions and the Loons and overpriced dippin’ dots at the games

im from Thunder Hockey and ice fishing

im from Chuck Taylors that used to be white but have turned brown from adventures

im from waterskiing and cuts in my feet from stepping on zebra mussels

im from, “its just like sitting in a chair,” and “knee high by the 4th of July”

im from “red, right, returning,” and “red at night sailor’s delight, red in the morning sailor’s warning”

im from the smell of bonfires and sugarbeets

im from watching the sunrise and from being jealous seeing my brothers’ handprints on the sidewalk at the state park

im from feeling pretty special because my friends don’t know how to take the fish off the hook or better yet put the worm on