Celebrating the 4th of July, Part I

Louis

Louis and Harrison

Erica with Sally (her niece)

Sam, number four son, is the one who makes sure our family meets and greets socially at intervals in the year, and so he organized the picnic in Millcreek Canyon--everyone's favorite canyon--for the evening of July 3rd.

Sometimes he has to endure major grief and whining.  Thursday afternoon, I went to the grocery store to buy my part of the picnic goods.  The weather was miserable: dark clouds, intermittent rain and an unruly wind blowing me around the parking lot.  I was anticipating a bad weather picnic, which is part of a Plummer family tradition.

Tom's mother, Elva, used to make a huge picnic lunch for Memorial Day.  We would all trot up to Heber to "decorate" the graves and have a picnic after.  Some of these days were perfect, but others were wretched, sitting at a picnic table outside in cold, wet, and windy weather, pretending to have a good time.  The Plummers were devoted to the idea that they were happy no matter what.

Sam is Elva incarnate.  And I was mad at him all of Thursday afternoon.

"Call him and ask him if we're going through with this." I growl at Tom.  I get Tom to do my dirty work.  It's nasty, but it keeps working.

He does call, and Sam says he thinks it will be fine up in the canyon.  What kind of logic is that?

We meet at the bottom of the canyon at six'o clock.  I get out of the car and walk to Sam's car.  "It's raining." I say.  "You are the reincarnation of Elva Plummer."

He smiles.  "It's clearing up," he says.

I stop at Spencer's car.  He smiles too.  "It's clearing up."

"That's what they said on my wedding day and it poured all night long."

We drive up the canyon to a spot where Sarah and the boys are waiting for us with a fire going in the pit.  

The sun comes out, immediately, like some Old Testament miracle.  It was a perfect evening.

Charles to me:  "Maybe you should have had your wedding reception in Millcreek Canyon!"

Optimists always win over pessimists, because they refuse to have a bad time.  I hate that about them.