Summertime in the Bayous of Louisiana

Growing up in the bayous of Louisiana is quite an experience. The summers are extremely humid and hot. But, to me, growing up there is an experience I never want to forget. Some of my favorite summertime activities included playing in the woods and swimming or vine jumping at the creek. My younger brother and sister would always tag along, but that never bothered me. Many times the only children to play with were your siblings, and families tended to be very close.

I remember one time in particular when I was ten years old. I was just starting to worry about my appearance. I was starting to get interested in clothes and being less of a tomboy. On this particular day I can remember wearing a cute halter top that was white with blue and red sailboats all over it, and a strap that tied around my neck. The front of me was covered while at the same time my back from the shoulders to mid back was exposed. I had on denim shorts and sandals.

It was a terribly hot and humid summer day, and though we didn't particularly care to go swimming we still wanted to go down to the creek. It was nice to just walk along the edge, with the coolness of the woods around us. It was very similar, to my ten year old imagination, to going on a jungle safari with all the vines, bushes, trees and animals. The sun could barely peak through all the underbrush and overgrowth. You never knew what you would come across on any given day. Many times we saw snakes of all sorts and armadillos as ornery as a wet cat. So, today, we decided to go vine jumping.

After a few hours of horsing around we found the perfect jumping hole. It was about twice as deep as I was tall, so it was a good size. It was all dried up, with only a thick layer of red clay mud at the bottom. My brother scouted around the hole for just the right vine to cut. One thing to remember is that a vine that looks strong and sturdy can be very brittle inside. A good idea would be to test the vine, pulling and yanking on it, before you actually climb it and go. Luckily the boys in are group are pretty daring, and one of the heavier ones swung across the ravine to test it. No mishaps!

Usually we would swing on the vine one at a time. But, today my brother decided we should all go double. I told him that my sister and I were afraid it would break, and that he and Tubby should try it out first as a pair. They went safely and made it back. So, we all figured it would hold any pair that decided to give it a swing.

My sister asked me if I would go with her, but I tried to back out because I was still a bit afraid to go double. I had a fear of falling down the into the deep hole with a mud floor. She would not let up on me, asking repeatedly. She said that the boys went numerous times and it worked for them, so it would be safe for us to try.

Getting up on the vine was easy, my sister was much smaller than I was so I could hold up higher on the vine. We did need a little bit of a push to get going across the hole, and that is what I think did it; the vine broke! But, that wasn't the worse of it, much to my dismay. My sister grabbed onto my favorite halter top as she fell. Thank goodness it was tied around my neck! There we were, in the bottom of the mud pit, me with a ripped shirt. I asked the boys to throw me one of their tee shirts. One said he would, if I was brave enough to change right there in that pit. I thought about it for a minute and got a brainstorm. I told him I would, but he must promise they would get us out afterward. He promised, but little did he know. He threw me the shirt. I slipped it on over my torn halter, covering myself, and slid the halter down. So, in essence I pulled the shirt over me and the wool over his eyes!

The boys rummaged for a good strong vine and pulled us out of the miserable pit. We were muddy and tired, and very ready to go home. But, two things I learned on this trip were looks can be deceiving and always bring a spare set of clothes when going on a day excursion in the woods.