Swing On By...

photo: Rodney Smith

There are many reasons I'd like to live in the country. I have written of them before, in fact; but the reality is that I will not be living in the country anytime soon, nor am I sure it will ever be the best choice for us anyway. Still, I have my reasons. Big yards - with ample room for vegetable gardens, a pool, playhouse, tree house, room to raise chickens, and a barn to house barn cats. I would wish for apple trees, picnic spots, and a little pond my kids could skate on in the winter. Sounds idyllic, doesn't it?

Still, there is one more reason: I would want a swing. Now, I realize you don't need to live in the country to have a swing set (although our present lot doesn't afford the space), and we do have our porch swing - which sees lots of use - but I want a swing like this:

photo: Katrin Cargill.com

Or maybe a tire swing, which I could strategically settle myself upon, fling my head back and, throwing caution to the wind, let my hair graze the worn, dusty ground as I swing.

The memories of doing that as a school girl come flooding back even as I picture it. I distinctly remember the dizzying feeling as the tire would swing round and round, and my head would spin even more if I closed my eyes. I would marvel at how the backs of my eyelids appeared bright red as the sun shone through them, and I felt as if I didn't have a care in the world. It leaves me wondering if I could still summon that same, carefree feeling.

I remember teaching my children to pump their legs, ever hopeful that I wouldn't be forever beckoned to "Push me, Mummy," when I longed to just chat with the other mums at the playground, or read a few pages from a book while sitting on the deck at home. I now know that those are days I sometimes miss; but I know they are days I will return to and appreciate more when my own children share their young with me some day.

Each spring I prowl around my little yard looking for a potential spot to hang a swing for our daughter, hoping one surfaced like some forgotten new planting. I want to have another look at a little girl swinging happily, head thrown back...hair sweeping the ground.

Back out I go to search for a magical beanstalk...