Summer At My Cabin In Show Low, Arizona

During summer vacations, my family spends as much time as we can at our cabin in Show Low, Arizona. The smell of pine trees, a chilling breeze, and the crackling of fireplaces gives such a comforting feeling and allows me to escape from the real world for a while. It is relieving to get away from the blazing heat down in Phoenix. We have many lifelong friends who also share the pleasure of owning a cabin in Show Low. Summer is, by far, the best part of every year.
Our cabin lies right on the 13th tee box of a golf course. Every morning, we wake up to the “tink” of a club hitting the ball off the tee. Swimming at the community pool, playing games at the family center, and enjoying the outdoors of the forest is how we spend our days. Once in awhile, my siblings and I get a big group of friends together and go hiking around the lake to go cliff jumping into the water. The sunset over the reservoir is miraculous. The orange and pink in the sky gives the water a beautiful shimmer. It makes it look like someone poured dye in
the lake. Watching the sun go down over the water is an image that is burned into my mind forever. Returning home after a fun and eventful day is the best. We walk through the door and the savory smell of freshly spiced ground beef envelops us. Crisp lettuce, diced tomatoes, minced onions, and bowls of shredded cheese all lie on the counter top. Immediately, we know that mom is making her famous Tacos in a Bag. By the time we get cleaned up and the dinner is prepared, our mouths are literally watering and our stomachs are grumbling. We make an assembly line with the different ingredients. First, start off by taking a small bag of chips (usually Doritos or Fritos) and crush them until they’re in bits and pieces. Next, add the meat, veggies, cheese, sour cream, and anything else desired. Lastly, hold the bag closed and shake it to mix all the ingredients together. Dinner is very casual in our house so we always grab a spoon and eat it right out of the bag. My siblings and I have two or three bags because they are so delicious and irresistible that nobody can ever get enough. After dinner, around nine or ten at night, all of the kids in our neighborhood meet at the 1st hole of the golf course and play “50 Fast”, which is basically hide-and-go-seek tag in the dark.
We run all around and chase each other until we could barely walk anymore. After “50 Fast”, we go home and have a second serving of Tacos in a Bag because the aroma lingers in the cabin and it is unavoidable. Whenever my mom makes Tacos in a Bag, I get a deja vu feeling to the summers we have at our cabin. It seems like the scent of ground beef and fresh vegetables carry so much more than flavor. When I smell this in our kitchen, I can feel the cool breeze of chilly Show Low nights. I can smell the aroma of pine trees in the forest. I can hear the crackling of our fireplace as we all sit around and eat our dinner. I can hear all of my friends laughing and screaming and having a good time. Nothing can ever beat that feeling of comfort I get from Tacos in a
Bag.