Palo Alto Tender Tracks November 6, 2012

Dennis Martins Creek
Third Quarter Moon
Day 19

Today  was Kadens birthday celebration and Miu was off with her Dad in Shasta and Emme was home sick.  Kaden brought us some lovely cupcakes and of course, they were well received.  Circle was peaceful, slow moving, sweet and the day went on in the same manner.
When we got to Dennis Martin off we went up the hill to discover what lay ahead of us.  What did we find but the same HUGE lumps of? something in the middle of the trail and in several piles along the trail, that we had seen last time we were here.  Parts of it we summized looked like horse poop but, who ever saw horse poop in this BIG of a pile with out any definition ???? And the smell and color didn’t quite fit the profile of true horsey scat!  However, that was the best guess we had and then off we went.
Later on that day we came across two people riding horses but we did not see these horses poop.
We all settled straight in.  I cannot find the white cloth that I put down for lunches so I put another one down only this time it is not for us to sit on but rather for our food and we sit around it.  Gisselle was  not as pleased about this and really wanted to sit on it because she did not want to sit on the ground.  She got creative and sat on her back pack and then ate.   Alice, ate a small amount and then charged off towards the little pond to investigate.  And, she found that there was no more water in the pond but there was water right behind it. Kaden, Paul and Evan were not far behind her and they began to have a grand time of it over there.  Jill and I piggy backed on each other with the different groups first she would be with this  group and me with Aoife and Gisselle.  Then we switched and then we were all over there.
Alice wanted to get up to the top of the hill near us and I snuck away to go up there. When she saw me she really wondered how I got up there and then she and Kaden figured it out.  Then, we were on top, Evan was laying on a tree branch hanging over the water and the rest were below.  Gisselle just went for it and splashed in the water to cross, actually after Evan had led the way, and she said how much she LOVED being in the water.  Aoife followed her only pulled her pants up really high so as not to get wet.  And oh yes, Alice tried to cross this part without getting wet but fell in and was not pleased. Paul offered her his extra clothes but she opted to wear Jill’s sweatshirt instead for the rest of the day.
On top Alice, Kaden and I began to draw and paint with the wonderful rocks we found and down below they were painting their faces like Jaguars and Chita’s with the rocks from the cool waters.
The beauty of this day was facilitated with a slow enough pace so that everyone could just unwind at their own pace and discover their true joys.  Each one settled into their very own discoveries of water, painting, water, cold, wet, dry, safe, balance of logs and things and imbalance.  I have a grand image of Evan and Kaden RUNNNNNING down the hill to get back to the bus and Gisselle and Aoife sitting and eating and talking with Jill for a long time with such ease and comfort.  Evan relaxed so deeply into lying on the branch like a true cat and Alice delighted with figuring out how to get up a formidable hill.
A sweet and lovely day.