It lit up in flame faster than you can say “supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.” But I guess you can’t really say those words that fast anyway. Before I could utter the words “don’t wave it in the air,” that is precisely what happened. A marshmallow on fire, waving through the air is destined to have a bad ending. But he knew what he was doing – or so he told me. He claimed that he likes his marshmallows “crispy and black.” But really, I knew that this 5 year old just didn’t have the patience to roast it until it was that perfect golden brown, and creamy on the inside.

As the fire continued to crackle into the night, the flames eventually becoming red hot coals, we made our way to tent. We cozied on up into our sleeping bags as the night air became colder and colder with each passing moment. It was a night of celebration. Celebrating the end of summer and the beginning of fall. Celebrating the end of a chapter – one in which they learned to ride bicycles, learned to [kinda] swim, and learned that not all kids make good friends – and the beginning of a new one.

I may be two decades older than them but on that last summers’ night, we connected. Over smores and sleeping bags, and stories both scary and silly, we said goodbye to one season and hello to another. With both appreciation of what has been accomplished and excitement about what is to come, we laid our heads on our pillows and looked up at the star-filled sky as we slowly drifted off to sleep. Because, for all 3 of us, we are excited about where our lives are taking us in this next season and can’t wait for this new chapter to start…