Tender Tracks Thurs. Day 60

May 11, 2017
Day after Full Moon
Lake Lagunitas

Jesse was home with a hurt foot and I suggested Michelle stay home and do some TT work since there were just five children.

The weather was cooler then Tues and a bit warmer then Wednesday.  Grandpa North seems to keep his hold on the cool and windy weather and that is what we experienced on and off throughout the day.

When the day began Archer got, as he has often done, upset with Isabella and Ruby and began using unkind words. I stopped the bus to see what the discomfort was all about.  As I invited more clearer feelings in it turned out that the day before Archer was feeling like two girls at his other school were being mean to him.  There was a beautiful exchange at this point around his needs and how he can ask for them and how the girls can let him know if they would like to play with him.  It would take a lot for me to write the whole dialouge down but just to say, it never ceases to amaze me how, when a person/child is met, their intensity subsides and their true and mostly simple and clear needs rise up. This then can all be tended to with grace and beauty. Phew, it worked and off we went.

When we got to the Lakes Jake and Archer jumped out to explore with glee. Kuba noticed that our water puddle/lake right there when we got out was EMPTY/DRY! and Isabella and Ruby went right back to their “house.”

Kuba began gathering material to make his father a birthday present for a week or so from now. Jake really wanted to play with Kuba a lot during the day. Actually he wanted to play with everyone on and off all day.  Kuba wanted to play with Jake every now and again and Archer now and again and by the end of the day they were all weaving their play stories together.

Today we sang our new songs with great fun and then I told them a story that they asked for on Tues: Tiki Tiki Tembo No Sa Rembo Chari, Bari Ruchi Pip Perri Pembo!
What fun we all had with that.

We then packed up and made our way to an old and familiar place. The walk was fun and engaging. When they got there they really DID remember it. The girls instantly wanted to take off their clothes and get in the water. That didn’t last too long however as the day was really too cold. So, clothes went back on though Ruby really wanted to stay in her shirt and underwear.  Archer joined them and by lunch he got cold and re dressed.  Kuba really, really, really tried to make a tri pod to build for his dad with string I had but it kept falling, and falling and falling and falling. He finally decided to take it home and work on it there.  Jake and Archer REALLY wanted to build with him or, shall I say, build it for him. That didn’t really go over too well.  So, they carried on exploring the area and looking for sticks for me to make bows and arrows with.  Which I did and the three boys wound up with bows and arrows. Jake was impatient with the arrow part so finally just ran around “shooting” his bow. Archer was similar but wasn’t using it so carefully so I tended to it for a time.  Kuba actually was able to shoot his arrow and went around for the rest of the day practicing this.

The girls had a great house. Jake became the great Guardian, Archer was something in there that I never figured out but it made them all laugh and Kuba, well he was simply, the Archer!

When we had to go home it was very delightful and funny as the girls sang a chant they made up the ENTIRE way back. This was not pleasant for the boys and they were “annoyed” with  such carrying on. So they got to figure out where to put themselves on the trail so they didn’t have to be apart of that!  And the girls, they were in 7th heaven. They also held a stick together that their hats were being carried on the whole way back as well.
Go to our Facebook page to see and hear this!

At lunch I told several stories that they enjoyed, we were sung to by the Red Shouldered Hawk and we heard the very loud pounding of a Pileated Woodpecker and a Crow watched us all the way through our lunch, just sitting above us ever, ever so still!