This essay, which I first wrote in 2007 not long after I moved to Rochester, NY, seemed worthy of resurrection after my last post about kids in nature.
I wasn’t sure whether to title this post: Be Careful What You Wish For or, Believe in the Law of Attraction. So I decided to leave it up to you.
I have been dreaming of the day that my boys outpace me on a walk. It’s been agonizing, to say the least, to take my kids on an outdoorsy walk because, inevitably, one or both of them pitches a fit about being too tired, too bored, or too hurt to continue beyond the parking lot. Let me repeat. The Parking Lot.
See what I mean?
As a Mother and Nature Buff Who Loves To Hike, I have a problem with this.
My friends tell me this stage will pass…that my boys will one day seek to impress me with their strength, stamina, and prowess in the woods and I’ll be huffing and puffing to keep up. Seeing how the boys are going on all of 6 and 8, I’ve lost all belief.
You might think this is harsh. But walking in the woods with them is like walking on a giant flat of bubble gum…like being tied to a cement block, my legs moving and scraping back against the dirt as my chest leans forward into an invisible harness.
And then Sunday happened. We woke up, had coffee, puffed our feathers, then said “What’cha wanna do today?” Because to me, the only thing worth “doing” is seeing something natural and beautiful that’s also FREE, I said, “Let’s go to Sodus Point.”
I had no idea what or where Sodus Point was–but I liked the name. I had heard it on the local birding listserv.
I knew that
1) it was on the lake
2) it attracted birds
A bit more research (godiluv Google) showed that it is a hell of a lot birdier in winter, but it was still a good destination because it was On The Water, and all my trips to Target and Wegmans made me Yearn For The Sea (you know, parking lot gulls?).
So we went.
We took the slow road to Sodus, which meant meandering along Lake Road, home to obnoxiously beautiful lakefront McMansions with acres of manicured lawns that swept toward the parkway.
As we travelled further east, smaller, more intimate homesteads– built before the big lakefront boom–peeked from underneath large trees.
Soon we entered apple country, with thousands of acres of orchards and handwritten signs in Espanol para los trabajadores migratorios.
We picnicked at Sodus Point and admired its 1871 lighthouse and maritime museum. We even climbed 52 steps to the light tower for a 360-degree view. (The climb was a piece of cake—so why do those tiny muscles above my knees still ache?)
Maritime museum and lighthouse at Sodus Point, NY
The view from the light tower showed something incredible on the lakeshore just a few miles away: a dozen or more massive earthen spires reaching toward the sky. Looking through the binoculars they were impressive.
So we set out to capture those spires…
Sandstone spires from Chimney Bluffs State Park, Lake Ontario shoreline, New York.
The family climbed back in the car and made our way around Sodus Bay (a long drive, by the way) and wound up at Chimney Bluffs State Park. I studied the trail map while the boys took off in the direction of the water and found the lakeside trailhead.
Chimney Bluffs State Park, Lake Ontario shoreline, New York.
After a few hundred yards on the trail I felt suddenly naked and light, so I looked behind me to gather my burdens.
But they weren’t there. I realized my kids were running ahead…far ahead. They were disappearing into the woods along the windy trail that hugged, sometimes precipitously, the towering ridge above the lake.
They were FREE!
Free to roam, free to run.
I caught glimpse of their shirtless torsos, the bas relief of their precious vertebrae, spindly rib cages, and the graceful curve of their upper pelvic bone.
The boys raced along, smashing past wildflowers, bumping into kissing couples…
I totally hear Minnie Ripperton right now, "Loving you is easy cuz you're beautiful....la la la la la la do do do do do..."
…and tripping over tree roots. They stopped only long enough to cheat death by peering over the edge of the steep, vertical cliffs.
Note how close Paul's left foot is to the edge. That's how close the trail is the cliff.
We probably got a mile or two out of the boys before they honestly tuckered out. This was unheard of.
- Gradual erosion of the rocks has left these sharp, grand spires in the Lake Ontario shoreline.
Midway through our jaunt, I asked Paul why he thought the kids were so eager to run the trails today. What made today different than any other day? Was the Law of Attraction–which states that if you ask the universe for something it will come to you no questions asked–at work here?
Paul leaned against a sign post, watching the boys play, and said: “No, it’s because the trails we’ve been taking them on WEREN’T NEARLY DANGEROUS ENOUGH.”
The sign behind his shoulder read: “DANGER. Sharp Unstable Bluffs. STAY BACK!”
Danger. Sharp Unstable Bluffs. STAY BACK!
Yep, its a boy thang.
Proud Warriors of Chimney Bluffs
UPDATE (January, 2010)
Two years later I can report that kids really DO grow up. Just last summer they put miles and miles under their shoes and climbed three Adirondack mountains. I find that the wilder the landscape, the more excited they are to explore it. I think this says a lot about the importance of saving our country’s wildest places. They strike a chord within all of us…”
Related posts:
- Our Mission: Get More People “Out There” With Nature I recently renewed contact with a long-lost friend who said “What you do [for a living] sounds so interesting. Getting out there with nature.” It...
- Birding With Kids: The Raw, Unfiltered Truth I'm ALL FOR getting kids inspired by nature, but as I've said before, here at Birds, Words, & Websites, I'm all about the truth. Therefore,...
- Top Fall Birding & Nature Festivals Okay, peeps. If you are not already scheduled for a fall birding festival I’m afraid I’ll have to send the birding police after you. Festivals...
{ 1 trackback }
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Imagine my excitement when my son Jack (then aged 3) asked to go to the local RSPB nature reserve – I was so proud!
Until he explained the rationale behind this youthful enthusiasm – an ulterior motive. “They make lovely cheese toasties there dad”.
Sigh – nearly 7 now and a better birder than the old man.
haha. I’ve had that happen to me, too. “Let’s go swimming, Mom.”
“Great idea, son. Glad you thought of it!”
“There’s a SNACK MACHINE there!”
Sunday afternoon my 7 year old daughter asked me to take her birding and she declared birds to be her “third favorite” animal after cats and horses. We had a blast! The sun was shining and the sky was as blue as blue can be, while snow remained on the ground. We saw a rare in Idaho Rusty Blackbird, Spotted Towhees, and several others that captured here heart. The best of all was when I had her boosted up on my shoulder as she peered through my binoculars at a Great Horned Owl and she exclaimed “I see its yellow eyes!”.