Marin Tender Tracks Tues. Sept. 16, 2014 Day 3

Waxing half Moon
Lake Lagunitas
What is your favorite season of the year?

Theron wasn’t with us because he was a bit sick today.  In truth, about half of the children were coughing and filled with mucous and such.  The change of weather often times gets us caught off guard.  And, it turns out, that the Zoo Key from last week and all it’s upset that came with it, really WAS Hanna’s.  Julian came today very excited because HE got a Zoo key this past weekend and was quite happy with it!
They bustled in the bus without event, stuffed animals handed out and off we went to a day that was truly magickal, wonder filled and a day of settling in to routine with ease and grace.
Snack did not go over well as it was stuffed dates with cream cheese and Walnuts. It seems that the children, accept a couple, do not like such things as this.  Linsey and I on the other hand were just FINE with the snack.
They learned a new song, a directional song, that will be sung every day. It is a song that gives thanks and honor to each of the “Houses” that Grandfather Sun walks through each day (East, South, West, North) plus Above, Below and, my favorite, the Heart that Holds It All Together. the words are thus:
East oh East we Love you so, bright and beautiful here we go…
South oh south your light so bright, as we walk with day time sight…
West oh west the day does end, thankful dreaming through the night…
North oh North so cold and wise, Earth and Elders as our guides…
Up above you protect us so…
Earth below you help us grow..
Here is our heart with out it oh we could not laugh or giggle or grow!!
After each sentence we give a bit of corn meal to the direction ending up giving ourselves some, like a self blessing!
Our story was about the same two children, a boy and a girl who go on an adventure that Grandma sends them on. She gives them a bag filled with beans that they are to place every now and then along the path in order to find their way back home.  They sing Twinkle, Twinkle little start two times and then put some beans down.
However, before circle, when we first got there,they found “blue flowers.”  Those blue plastic things that stick out of the ground as if they grew from the Earth. The children found SOO many of these and were running all over looking for them. This may seem like such a simple thing yet, it is filled with: excitement, curiosity, enthusiasm, focused attention and intent, the ability to track, problem solving and fact finding .  Tracking is just like reading as you are putting symbols, and shapes together to create meaning.  We then found water in the creek that WAS NOT MOVING!!!! But why??? and, “did you hear that sound?”  ” It sounds like water running.”  “Where is that coming from?”  And off we went to find the source.  They found it and half went down to explore the teeny waterfall and the other children were with Linsey at the place where the water made a little creek. In that little creek was a California Newt.  With muddy hands ready, because that is what you do when you are about to hold a California Newt ( for it’s protection from our hands) most of the children held this treausre with GLEE!
After this and story/snack time we began our own bean dropping adventure.   On the way to our place that was described in the story, we came across wonders of the natural world.  the children found loose boards on the deck and metal things to pull, birds to listen to, things in the water that didn’t make sense to them and their legs that liked to RUNNNNNN.  Linsey, Arel, Jai, Hana, Velia, Nico and Thea found Dog tracks, Deer Tracks and LINSEY TRACKS!
Julian, Enzo and I were walking along the trail and there, right in front of us was an OTTER! yes, an otter came down from the hill and stood in the trail looking a bit caught and not knowing where to go.  Someone made a little movement and it went down the hill. We were so excited so Julian and Enzo ran to tell Linsey and the children. As we were walking back past where we saw it I heard rustling in the bushes down below and saw lot’s of squirelly movement then, splash, in the water and then I looked out and I saw TWO otters swimming, swimming.  I did all I could to help the children there see them but I do not think they did.  They are learning what to look for in the way that when I showed them a Woodpecker in the tree they weren’t sure what they were looking at.  Julian however knew all about the flight and pattern of flight that the Turkey Vulture has and pointed that out to us.
The bean bag was passed around to many to drop upon the ground but it was Hana who enjoyed it the most and wanted to be the one to drop the beans often.  Julian found the bridge that we were looking for first and then we all made it  to a beautiful spot to be in for the rest of our day.
HIghlights:
Julian building, Enzo joining both having FUN!
other children coming in and out and helping with this.
Thea and Nico loving and continuing to gather burnt redwood tree for paint and for something we need it for for Halloween.
Enzo, also, was scrapping the trunk for black paint
Jai too was scrapping as well as building
Hana and Ariel were making a fairy house with me, on their own and playing with everyone on and off.
Velia was doing all of the above as well.
We all moved in and out of different groups and then, we saw it:  A beautiful Buck very, very quietly drinking water on the other side of the bridge from us.  They creeped up like in the story last week, sat down to be very still in hopes that we could watch it for awhile.  But there still was just a bit too much noise for this buck so he moved on and the children went back to play.

By the time it was time to leave they were all settling in so nicely and all were together playing.  This is very common. They packed up easily and off we went with a beautiful walk back tracking our beans to make sure we were always on the right pathl