So, when it rains, we all have to decide how to cope. The other day, I started my morning walk in a kind of drizzly haze. It was one of those days with which we are all too familiar here in the Berkshires. We’ve all experienced them: Somehow the damp gets into our clothes, from our shoes and socks right on up. No matter how we prepared we think we are, we seem to feel cold and miserable for the rest of the day, even once we dry out.
We certainly have choices. We really don’t have to go out, but there is something in our DNA that demands that if we have been walking on a regular basis, we have to stay with the program. I really don’t know why it works that way, but I guess we are creatures of habit. So there I was in the pouring rain, wet, cold, and uncomfortable. But once you start out, there’s no turning back.
We are incredibly lucky in Great Barrington to have the opportunity to enjoy Lake Mansfield Beach. You can sit on the bench there, mesmerized as you gaze out upon the other side of the lake. If you concentrate hard enough, you can make out the trees and the bushes on the other side. As I look out across the lake, I think of all the people who came before me and imagine what they used to see as they sat, looking in the same direction. We all know that there are bears and foxes and all nature of critters who live in the very places we are looking.
Years ago, my niece, Andrea, was married in Slovenia at a place called Lake Bled. Every time I look out on our beautiful Lake Mansfield, I think of Lake Bled. That, of course, is what happens to all of us: We associate memories with what we are seeing in real time. So I see Lake Bled in Slovenia when I look out on Lake Mansfield. I’m certainly willing to bet that each person reading this now knows exactly what I mean. What exactly do you see and remember as you look out on our little lake?
Our beautiful lake is filled with creatures. Not only are there fish, but there are different kinds of turtles and frogs. Then, too, there are all kinds of floating flotsam and jetsam. Unfortunately, some of the floating objects can be dangerous if you were to get entangled with them. I love to sit by the lake and admire the costumes of the people who are going to go swimming even in the worst of weather. You really do have to admire the fortitude of the folks who are willing to challenge the lake. On Fire Island, we had something called “The Cove” where people waded in, careful not to step on something that would cut a foot. There are days when our Lake Mansfield reminds me of the Fire Island Cove. The water laps up on the shore and it’s all so peaceful.
Think about how everything is connected. The lake is filled with living beings and surrounded by vegetation. Then there is the zoo, consisting of the beautiful geese that make a wonderful honking sound as they follow each other, often single file. If you are a turtle, what are you thinking as people swim past you? Every once in a while, I will see someone with a fishing pole who has a cast a line out into the lake. I often ask the fisher whether they have ever caught anything and they almost always give me a positive answer. It seems clear to me that they believe that my question is misplaced, as if to say, “Of course, I catch things.”
