The best days of summer happen right here at home

Every small town has a few days each year when it seems like everyone comes home.

For us, those days arrive with names like Lovell’s Days, Byron Days and Cowley Pioneer Days. The streets are filled with people we haven’t seen in years. Former classmates wander through the park. Cousins, aunts, uncles and grandchildren show up from all corners of the country. Family reunions are planned around them, and class reunions seem to happen naturally. For a few days, our towns become larger, louder and somehow younger again.

The churches are filled with familiar faces we haven’t seen in months or years. Some have traveled hundreds of miles to be here. Others have lived just down the street all along.

The parades remain the centerpiece. Kids scramble for candy. Grandparents settle into lawn chairs. Old friends wave from floats, and fire trucks shine a little brighter than usual.

I especially enjoy seeing political candidates riding down Main Street. They shake hands, smile for pictures and do their best to earn our votes. My grandchildren have their own system for evaluating candidates. Their support usually goes to whoever throws the most candy. As a grandfather, I have to admit that’s a surprisingly persuasive campaign strategy. Hint, hint.

These celebrations remind us that a community is more than a place on a map. It is a collection of relationships built over generations. As a retired teacher, I always enjoy reconnecting with former students, though it can be a little humbling. Every year someone with gray hair, a few wrinkles and grandchildren of their own walks up and says, “Hi, Mr. Bernhisel. Do you remember me?”

The truth is I struggled remembering names when I had a seating chart right in front of me. Forty years later, when that former sophomore biology student is sporting a full beard and reading glasses, I’m usually hoping they remember who they are.

Still, those chance reunions are among the best parts of these celebrations. They remind us how many lives have crossed paths in our little corner of Wyoming and how quickly the years have gone by.

In a world that often seems to move too fast and is too often divided by politics, headlines and the latest crisis, these hometown celebrations invite us to slow down. They remind us where we came from and why we love these places. They give us a chance to visit with neighbors, cheer for local kids, eat food we probably shouldn’t and enjoy the simple pleasure of being together.

None of these celebrations happen by accident. Behind every parade, family night, fun run, car show, rodeo and fireworks display are dozens of volunteers, who spend countless hours planning, organizing, setting up and cleaning up. Most of us see only the finished product, not the meetings, phone calls, fundraising and countless details that make these events possible.

As you enjoy these hometown celebrations this summer, take a moment to thank the people wearing volunteer badges, cooking food, directing traffic, setting up chairs or cleaning up long after everyone else has gone home. A simple “thank you” or “great job” can mean a lot. Communities are built by people willing to serve, and we are fortunate to have so many of them right here in Big Horn County.