A picture of the woods.
The children throw themselves up the creek bed in search of the crawdad that Sarah has already found the day before. They jump from rock to rock and scramble over pieces of drift wood that the dry creek bed has not managed to dispel. They come upon a shallow hole still filled with water from the last rain and Sarah points out the crawdad that was there the day before. The kids lean over the hole and try to get a better look while an adult tries to quickly snag the creature. The children are enthralled.
Suddenly the mystery of that hole of water is gone and they move on - up the creek bed and away from the adults. They move fast since they are lithe small people with sure feet. The adults call out to them to wait. We find ourselves trying to maneuver fast enough to keep watch, but carefully enough not to become a victim to the rocky ground. The kids make it to the end of the creek where a waterfall has gone dry and is now exposing a small indention that the kids climb into and around. We take pictures around the minicave and we move on to the next adventure.
Out at the mouth of the creek the children look up at a vertical climb to the top of a cliff. I see their bodies itching to move higher, to conquer the rocky precipice. And they do. I stay solidly on low ground and watch all 5 little ones scramble to the top with the men navigating the way and keeping it as safe as possible. Now the children tower high above us waving and calling to us. I can almost hear their thoughts of "Look at what we can do." Smiles are wide and their yells empowering. They have conquered this corner of nature.
Nature gives them what video games and t.v. can not. They now have a rich look at the earth around them, they have the sounds of the creek bed, the crunch of leaves and the crack of twigs. They smell the cedar and wild flowers. They hear the bugs buzz. They are part of the wild wood and it will change them as they have put their stamp on it.
