One must always be open to a new adventure. Today
I took one of my usual walks around the lake at Riverfront Park. I have blogged on this park before and it is one of my regular walks. Please note that the photos in this adventure are not my own. My camera was not at hand, and I don't post photos of children unless it is with very specific permission. It
was lovely, just after the rain yesterday. Lots of birds, not much
people. Walking all the way around the lake is usually impossible in
rainy times, but with the drought and all the creek was not a problem.
On
the way to the car park,
I walked thru the picnic area, I was not surprised to see a group of
people playing volley ball, a church group as it turns out. What was
less typical was that they were from India or Pakistan. (My
discernment was not good enough to decipher which, but it was both as
it turns out.) The church is a Krishna group from Milpitas, about an
hour and a half from here.
The
taller people were playing volley ball, and the smaller folk were
playing kickball in the parking lot. And I was scoping out which was
the person to talk to about riding herd on the wee ones so I could
back out without squishing someone.
That
is when I saw the girl, 6-8 year old with beautiful thick pony tail
and gold painting on her face. She had found a bit of redwood bark,
you know the stuff that gets fluffy. She thought she had found a
small animal. She was curious, some of her friends were “EEEWWW”
And of course this triggered a full blown case of Granny of the Trail
in me. I showed here how it belonged to the tree, and we looked at a
tree and she asked me if the holes in the tree were from the bad
bugs. No that is where there was a small branch. These were city
kids, with parents that do not know the local trees.
We
found an appropriate tall person to accompany us as I took them over
to a stand of 70 year old trees, with the accompanying tree growth.
We discussed poison oak, and how to not touch it. And what the new
growth on the tree looked like, and felt like. And what the clicking
sound in the trees was. And how they should walk all the way around
the lake after lunch.
I
came away with some new friends, and a book about Krishna.
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