Daylily days

Once you start to notice them, daylilies are everywhere. They grow thick on roadside banks and in fields. See a few here or there around a mailbox, lining a front porch or around an old gravestone. Their lush, tawny-orange flowers bloom and wither in one day.

So we have arrived at this moment. The sign at the Long Eddy Firehouse on Route 97 says: “Enjoy the summer—it’s short.” It reminds me that I should try to make the most of these daylily days of summer.

There is an excitement in the air that comes with all the people visiting our area. There are groups of camp counselors and kids at the movie theatres watching the last installment of Harry Potter, people canoeing on the Delaware, vacationers at farm stands and restaurants—all bringing variety and much needed commerce to our upstate communities. (And I do feel proud and hopeful to live in New York State these days, if only for the passage of the Marriage Equality Act.)

My own kids have been swimming at the Delaware Youth Center pool in Callicoon, NY, Oquaga Lake in Deposit, NY, and an array of neighbors’ ponds and pools. They go fishing in the evenings. My daughter is taking a beginners sewing course offered by the cooperative extension’s 4-H program. We have been re-shingling the garage roof, sorting the bookshelves and making hot salsa. We are also now the doubtful caretakers of “Fluffy,” the hermit crab, whom my son won at the Deposit Lumberjack Festival. It is these small events and happenings that make up the fabric of the summer.

The following is a sampling of the many events offered this weekend throughout our area. Check them out.

• The final concert of the third annual West Branch International Music Festival featuring classical musicians from around the world, Sunday, July 31 at 4 p.m. at the West Branch Angler Resort, Hale Eddy, NY. Info and ticket sales at 607/467-5525 or http://westbranchfestival.org/reservations

• Hancock Volunteer Fire Department Field Days, Firemen’s field, Hancock, NY, July 28-30, featuring carnival rides, vendors, and Friday night fireworks at dusk.

• “Barbecue Bob and the Spareribs” sponsored by Callicoon Creek Park Association’s “Under the Moon in Callicoon” concert series. Saturday, July 30, at 8 p.m. Call 570/224-8404.

• “Young Singers of the Valley” concert featuring popular, classical and musical theatre songs presented by Delaware Valley Opera at 8 p.m., July 30, at The Tusten Theatre, Narrowsburg, NY. Call 845/252-3136.

• The 171st annual Orange County Fair through July 31 at the Orange County Fairgrounds, Middletown, NY. Weekend hours open at 11:30 a.m. Call 845/343-4826 for more information.

• The annual Francis Currey Day, in honor of the Fallsburg native and WWII Medal of Honor recipient, will feature games, rides, food and a military ceremony starting at noon at Morningside Park in Fallsburg, NY on Sunday, July 31. Fireworks display at dusk.

• The Great Train Robbery rail excursion on the Stourbridge Line, from Honesdale to Hawley, PA on Saturday, July 30, from 1 to 4:30 p.m. Call 570/253-1960.

Visit one of the many local farmers’ markets. Bask on the rocks at Skinner’s Falls. Dip your feet into the Delaware and enjoy these summer days.