the last day of summer

Today we went on a birdwatching walk in Cape Henlopen Park. Novices, we learned how to hold the binoculars and what to look for. Among birds we spotted were: ospreys, turkey vultures, herring gulls, nuthatches, and a tern. David picked up another horseshoe crab carcass and found one of the invasive "green crabs" sheltering under a big shell. There were tracks of different kinds of gulls, and lots of ghost crab holes. The guide showed us a toad, and pointed out a few plants we had seen on the Nature Walk. We got to try wild plums (tiny) and a lemonade tasting leaf whose name I forget. I get an idea what a hunter-gatherer's day might be like. Collecting enough tiny morsels to make a meal.

Back at the campsite David and Arthur found that they had won the campground Art Contest (we all suspected they and their friend Molly were the only entrants, but no matter: they all got prizes) so they came home with loot from the camp store and proceeded to catch a frog with an older boy, David has been hanging around with but doesn't remember his name. We all gaped at it for a few minutes and put it back in its sticky pond.

Tonight the kids play in the growing dusk with the other vacation kids. There is a sense in the air of something fleeting, the sound of cicadas in the air and the iconic smell of hamburgers grilling. This is the last night of the Labor day weekend: tomorrow night the campers will have packed up and gone. This week the schools open and the tourists clear out. The kids will say goodbye to their (nearly) single serving friends. Next weekend we will be in a house in Lewes, and something new will begin.

As I write this the shadows have already been gathering under the trees and the bustle of activity is dying down, most people likely eating their dinners. David and Arthur have moved their game inside, and occasionally call out a "hi" to a kid outdoors. Tom has gone to get a bottle of wine. I am listening to Tom waits "Nighthawks at the Diner" on the CD and Oliver is taking a nap.