I go back....

Looking at the myriad old family pictures has stirred up a storm of emotions in me. My mother has always had a camera and felt the need to capture important gatherings as well as the everyday happenings in our lives. I have always said I had a rich and full childhood and mom's collection of photos of our family camping days just reinforces it.
My parents divorced in 1975. There is no evidence of discourse in any of the old photos of them and it was presented to us and implemented with very little disruption in our little lives. We spent so much time together as a family either camping, boating or visiting relatives. Relatives were a big deal when I was little. We spent lots of time at my grandparents home in Tallahassee. We took quite a few trips to see my Aunt Ann's family in Montgomery. We went down to Sopchoppy to visit my dad's people and sometimes brought Granny Annie home to stay with us for a few days.
The camping weekends were awesome. St. George Island used to be completely open to the public from one end to the other. My dad lived to fish and we would drive all the way down to the east end of the island and pitch a tent. I remember Pat and I would spend hours trying to catch minnows for bait and chase sand crabs into their holes. We had a huge tent and a great Coleman gas grill and a water tank on top of the Jeep so we could even shower. Daddy built a portable wooden pantry that doubled as a kitchen counter. My mama didn't do anything halfway, especially when it had to do with cooking and cleaning.
When I allow myself to mentally relive this part of my life it is very easy to regret that it ended. I can't help but wonder what it might have been like if daddy had stayed forever. I know everything happens for a reason and we are always right where we are supposed to be, but what harm is there in wondering? Would it always have been as idyllic as the pictures and my memories portrayed it? Probably not. But sometimes it just feels good to think it would have.