My July 4th Memory

As we near July 4th (that's Independence Day here in the U.S.), I always think about my father. More than any other day, July 4th was special to him. It was always the first, and typically the only, day of the year when he would swim. He would come out in his swim trunks in the afternoon and hop in. Often he would just swim from one side to the other and then get out. If someone was swimming with him, he would stay a little longer. I have no clue why he picked this day. Maybe it was historically significant to him? Maybe it was that he was a farmer and it was hard to find time off? I never thought to ask; I'm sure he would have had a smart answer. I guess I'll have to swim tomorrow in commemerance of him - though I've already broken the tradition by swimming early this year. Oh well, there's always the next.