Lake Memories

Weeds & Wildflowers September Prompt / Gloaming

© Dennet ~ April 17, 2019 ~ Lake Dora

Ben and I had a getaway town that we visited several times a year, often with our grandchildren. Mount Dora, Florida, is 95 miles southeast of our home. I can’t count the number of nights we spent there, watching the sun set over Lake Dora. But right after the sunset is the gloaming. That magical time before dark settles in.

© Dennett ~ June 9, 2018 ~ Lake Dora

I haven’t returned to Mount Dora since Ben died on May 19, 2024. I doubt I ever will.

But we didn’t have to travel that far to see the gloaming over a lake. Sometimes we just needed to look in our backyard.

© Dennett ~August 2, 2020 ~ Unicorn Lake in our backyard

Many evenings we sat on our porch and watched the day end.

@ Dennett ~ Sept 6, 2017 ~ Unicorn Lake in our backyard

I can avoid Mount Dora and its gloaming, but I can’t avoid my own home, where I’m flooded with memories of Ben and me rocking on the porch, watching the sun set and the gloaming creep in.

These days, I rarely sit on the porch at sunset; sometimes memories and the gloaming are too sad to handle.

© Dennett 2026