My favorite swimming spot growing up was Fry’s Lake in Cabarrus County. As a teenager, I thought I was in heaven if I got to go swimming there on a Saturday.

Fry’s Lake had a sand bottom and no chlorine pool water, just water that you could not see through. What fun it was to feel that soft sand sifting through my toes. I felt like I was walking on clouds instead walking on muddy, gooey pond clay.

Our senior year, on the last school day, Beth, Jill, Alice and I headed to Fry’s Lake to go swimming with our other classmates. It had the highest metal sliding board I think I had ever seen. I remember climbing to the top and wanting to climb back down, because I was so high up, but the ladder was full of other classmates. I closed my eyes and prayed I wouldn’t die when I hit the water. I survived, but didn’t dare climb up again!

Platforms to jump off of in the middle of the water were so much fun. Snow cones to eat, wooden boards to sunbathe on, and being with friends made the day perfect!

Mary Kay Cox, Four Oaks, a member of South River EMC