Slice of Life #20 Challenge Day 2/31:
Heckrodt Musings
When my children were small, we used to spent a large amount of time at a nearby nature wetland reserve, Heckrodt. Following yesterday's church service, I drove my kids to Heckrodt, where we would spend part of the afternoon hiking on the trails.
"Mom, I remember Heckrodt being a lot bigger," my fourteen-year-old remarked as we entered the edge of the reserve.
"Well, you are a lot bigger than you used to be." Now my son is close to my height, if not taller than me. He continued, "My favorite part was always visiting the turtles and snakes in the nature center. Remember that time we got to hold all of those snakes?"
"I remember searching for animal tracks in the snow," My daughter shared.
I smiled, listening to them share their cache of Heckrodt memories.
As we walked along the snow covered trails, we noticed that there were several people looking up at a tall tree, binoculars in hand. One man even had a huge telephoto lens.
"What are you looking at?" I asked.
"There's a nest of owlets. Well, no one is sure that any owls actually hatched yet, but you can see the great horned owl at the top of the nest. It's quite amazing."
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| The tree that included the nest with the great horned owl |
We continued to explore.
"I forgot how pretty it is here, Mom," My eleven-year-old daughter shared, "you can hear the woodpeckers pecking the trees and the cardinals singing. I like how the small herd of deer hang out here. It's so beautiful here."
I nodded in agreement.
These observations, especially coming from my iPhone/iPad/Nintendo Switch obsessed offspring, remind me that it's important for me to get my kids outside.
Being outside helped my busy weekend end on such a peaceful note. I need to get us all outside more.
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What a wonderful way to spend some time together. Your description and photos make me want to go visit this place. I love your second to last sentence.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful descriptions paired with such vivid photographs. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteThis is lovely! I enjoyed your descriptions and your recorded conversations with your kiddos. How true your last statement is about getting outside and away from tech! As the weather warms up where I am, I look forward to more of this! Great slice!
ReplyDeleteI love seeing the photos of your walk. And an owl spotting! I saw a great horned owl a couple of weeks ago and nearly drove off the road, I was so excited. I could feel the peacefulness in your piece of writing, the braiding of the walk with the conversations with the memories.
ReplyDelete