Under Wraps

My neighborhood refuge is currently under wraps, being rehabilitated, rejuvenated and undergoing a little cosmetic surgery.  It has been under the knife for almost two years.  Since that time there has been a storm fence and nylon wrap around the perimeter.  After all, this is tinsel town where appearance is everything and like most things in this desert town, although it gives the appearance of being natural our little lake is man-made.  The magic is the finished product and not the process, which can be messy and unsightly.

The Big Reveal is close being scheduled to happen this month and we are all excited.  Our oasis had been neglected for quite awhile.  The water was murky, the lake was leaking and polluted, and the infrastructure was debilitated and shabby.  Not the kind of place you want to showcase in a gentrifying hipster neighborhood.  But it had served us well in the last century, being a moist landmark in a dry urban landscape, refreshing and cool on a hot summer day.

As a community oasis, we are impatient while the refurbishing is being done.  We are still drawn to it, to gather and replenish ourselves after a long day.  But it remains wrapped up, with newly placed palm trees tied up like hostages beckoning us to free them.

The other night, I saw a group of folks enter surreptitiously to play and explore.  I'm sure it was a nocturnal urge for some mischief but it is a much bigger thing than themselves so they can not harm it.  I'm sure they just wanted walk around and check out the new improvements.  We have all been held at bay for so long that holes line the green wrap along the fence so we can peer into the lake and lick our chops at the cool promise it holds.