Palo Alto Tender Tracks Tues. Oct. 15, 2013 Day 13

Waxing Crescent Moon
Stevens Creek Open Space Preserve

The Sun was up, the air was warm but not too warm and off we went to enjoy a new place, a place with water, a bridge, digging with hammers, and all the boys going into the water with either half their clothes off or just going in!
We had another bit of a “backwards day” with regard to stories and songs.  So far we get to our place kind of late and I really like them to eat something, so, they ate pretty straight away when we got there and then were so involved with the landscape that it was far better to let them carry on, and they did with great glee.
I am just going to give a short recap here about the day:
All the boys accept Ridham went into the creek waist deep and had a GRAND!!! time of it!   Truly they were happy campers. Ridham was in delight with his games and was playing with the children outside of the water.  The girls were happy playing with their make believe games and then we all wound up over the bridge where all the Chinqapin trees were. At least I am pretty sure they were.  I ID them each year and then I wind up questioning this conclusion.  However, we found incredible little seeds in these very sharp and harry bed covers and inside where the seeds were it was soooo soft like velvet!
We had to be careful because these little prickers on the outer case of the seeds can poke quite uncomfortably, so Zac discovered as well as myself.  However, we played a great game of Coyote and Rabbit near all these fallen down hazards. One by one they all joined in the chasing and fun of the game.  The rabbits would run from the Coyotes and if they stopped/froze, the Coyote could  not get them.  If they got caught then they became a Coyote.
There was great and fun explorations through the trees next to the creek to get to the meadow, another way to get there other than the bridge.
It was a fine and sunny day with the birds singing around us, water singing and, oh yes, a new story with which they were a part of. I brought in a turtle shell that I used as an instrument for the story about a turtle that got hit on the head with an apple. He got so scared that he decided that it would be very wise to NEVER stick his head out again.  But alas, he became so very hungry.  And so the story goes on until he figures out that sometimes it is wise to stick your head out and sometimes to keep it in.   So, in this time of darkening, fall and winter,  it is a story of support and calling forth ones inner knowing and discovery.  It is a story that supports honoring ones fears and the fears of others, taking your time and discovering what is just right for you.  And it comes wrapped in a great little story that just might stick inside their psyches, hearts and minds and be of use come some important moment in time.