The Cliffs and the Ponds

When I ride past the frozen pond in the wintertime, I get the feeling of family fun. I mean so much fun. Only none of us are brave enough to confront the frozen pond that sits across the street from our family home in Sugar Brook. The pond that sits beneath the Cliffs condominium, a place where my Auntie always daydreamed about living in without her children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews. The frozen pond separated and illustrated two definitions of suburban life. Once the frozen pond was reached, a suburban neighborhood for families was left behind and a bachelor and bachelorette lifestyle began. The pond held up tons of condominiums and single suburban apartments above. These particular condo’s and apartments had different living arrangements. Meaning couples and single occupants. On one side of the street sat condo’s and apartments. On the other side residential houses. When I was young, I often visit my uncle in Oakbrook. When I entered the apartment complex, the apartments were decorated with beautiful thin wooden planks. The apartments had a very nice mixture of brown delicate woods. Often, people rented there and commuted to Detroit everyday. The apartment complex was very well lit and sat near condominiums which had a pond near by. Far deep beneath the condominiums was a beautiful river water front, which encouraged people to live there even more. During the wintertime, I could see a glare of light from the street lights. During the summer when the pond was thawed, tons of ducks would swarm the area looking for bread crumbs and other foods. Fisherman’s could be seen nearby at the riverfront in boats and at the edge of the river. During the summer when the pond was thawed, I would engage in barbecues with my family. Afterwards, I would cross the street and head towards my best friends. Me and my best friend never mentioned the pond. We never talked about the different world I experienced. She never knew that I had witnessed a whole different way of life. I never told her about the ducks, the ponds, the fisherman’s and the back seat rides in the Mercedes station wagons with my cousins. The reason is because to me, it was a different world of space. After I left my uncle’s bachelor pad and I crossed the street, me and my best friend proceeded to Sugar Brooke Park where our friends were. We then proceeded to our favorite corner store Dairy Mart, to load up on snacks. I loved the hostess honey buns, and Mamba’s. My best friend loved Cheetos and Skittles. We would make the corner store walk through a sandy pathway trail in 20 minutes. As soon as we got back to the playground we opened our Faygo sodas and gazed across the way at another suburban apartment complex, Lake in the Woods. Me and my best friend would often play all day until the streets light came on and then we would sprint out of the circle and back to our homes. All my childhood when I pass the frozen pond in my uncle’s Mercedes station wagon, a fun feeling came over me. I knew that when I got home, my favorite poodle Sergio would bark in the window as we pulled up. My aunt’s famous chili with steak pieces would be waiting. After I passed the pond in the Mercedes station wagon, a fun feeling would come over me. I would dash in the house and drop my back pack in the living room. I would search through all the blankets in their basement, for my sleeping bag. I would run across the street to my best friends for some hot chocolate and apple cider. Shortly after we would share homework assignments and watch television.