This past Wednesday was the first day of summer. I could have seen the world outside without artificial light during all the hours I was awake. Yet, I stayed indoors. Why? I wasn’t up to the threat. Counteracting my endless encouragement, want, and need to stay connected to the outdoors are thousands of tiny, biting…
The majority of my walks are taken in the quiet solitude of the woodlands or other country path. But that doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy a good walk in the city.
It’s not unusual for me to find and collect litter and other trash on my walks. Frankly, as my husband will agree, the habit can be a filthy pain in the neck. So it was exceptionally nice to get a tasty reward for participating in a local Earth Day clean up. Moreover, it was liberating…
Walking along the old Pennsylvania mill streams this time of year, I often find myself engaged in a childish treasure hunt, one better than any Easter egg hunt I’ve ever experienced. Golf balls. Left behind after the spring floods recede, they lodge like stones in the mounds of silt. Yesterday, I found seven within the…
Could it be? Is this really the last of the winter’s snow? April brings that uncertainty, the feeling that I’ve almost made it, excitement tinted with caution. I can’t let my guard down yet.
Today is the day I’ve been waiting for. It’s finally spring. According to the U.S. Naval Observatory, the 2017 spring equinox officially begins at 10:29 this morning. I’m hoping to take a break from my inside commitment to step outside and absorb the first light of my favorite season. You?
Gasp! There’s color. My mind needed a moment to confirm that my eyes had not tricked it. But yes, four times in the past week I found life unfolding once again. Each splash was an invigorating surprise. Meanwhile, tomorrow promises a foot of wind-driven snow. These springtime pioneers, having bravely entered the late-winter frontier, will…
I do like trails. They’re convenient. They reduce trampling. And they keep you from getting lost.
It was sunny when we left. It was sunny when we returned. In the hour between, my friend and I watched perpetual change unfold.
The routine on this day was less about getting out for a walk and more about refueling with the energy from the sun.