Swimming in certainty

Crystalline water at Walden Pond

If there's one thing I'm certain of it's this: I love ponds! My favorite summertime ritual is to get out of bed, head straight for a pond and dive right in.

Funny, after I've been pond swimming my hair always feels so soft and smells so fresh. Later in the day I find I don't need the deoderant I forgot to put on or feel the need to shower. Course, you have to pick a clean pond in the first place.

Like most kids, I loved going to bed as dirty as possible. Taking a bath was an option I'd happily skip if I had my way. On the rare occasion that I can begin my day baptized by pond water, I go to bed unwashed, the rapture of nature's elixir still with me.

These are the days.