When I was young at the lake, I remember pushing the water out of the way as I swam along the surface. My family and I would look for treasures, like golf balls and bottles and cans, at the bottom of the lake. As I moved around in the shallow area, I could feel the wet, mushy mud beneath my feet. I remember riding on the boat, skimming across the lake, feeling the breeze in my hair, thinking how I never wanted this trip to end.

When I was young at the lake, I remember feeling the chilly wind against my skin before I wrapped myself up in a towel. As I filled my stomach with grilled cheese and tomato soup, I could hear the loud rumble of cars and motorcycles and trucks as they passed by on the road beside the lake. I remember breathing in the smell of sunscreen while it was being sprayed everywhere. And as the sunscreen made its way and settled onto the surface of the lake, I could see the water bugs jumping around on the water.

When I was young at the lake, I was always so excited as I raced down the steps to the beautiful glimmering water. I remember how nervous I always was to jump into the cold water that swished around below me. But as soon as I hit the water, I would realize that it wasn't that bad, that I didn’t need to be that scared. While I swam around, I would always think about how happy I was to spend time at the lake with my family.

There were many things that I noticed while wandering around the forest that surrounded the lake, like the swaying trees and the sound of the leaves rustling around by a gush of wind. There were also many little critters like chipmunks and squirrels and tiny frogs that hopped and ran around the forest ground. As I sat on the rocks and stared at the lake in the distance, I could feel the breeze brush past my skin and create little ripples in the water. Exploring the forest and swimming at the lake helped me realize how lucky I was to spend time there with my family every summer.