Tender Tracks Tues. Week 28 Day 55

April 23, 2019
Waning Crescent Moon
Lagunitas creek near the Ink Wells

Josie absent today.

Today I knew that it was going to actually be HOT/81/87 degrees so, what better day then this to take them to this place. This is a place that none of them have been to before. It was quiet, away from people and a freedom that we do not usually have. Here we were able to have, for whoever wanted, to play with matches in order to practice lighting the tinder bundle.  Ellie and Theo were the only ones who wanted to.  We had hoped there would be some ground for making more plaster casts of their foot prints but alas, the ground did not support that.

When we first got there though they had a grand time climbing down a big hill, over a big log and onto a gravel beach. There the boys went straight to climbing and Holden into the water fairly quickly.  There was much debate as to when and/or not when to get wet. There were no extra clothes this day accept for Holden so,they had a lot of personal negotiations with this as to, “Am I going to get wet? or ” How much of my clothes can I get wet? or, “Do I want to go in my underwear and get wet?”. They really worked it and each came up with their own decisions, which were supported and they got to feel in an easy way.

When we very first got there the sun was covered over by clouds. When it became uncovered and great warmth rested down upon us the thought that they would dry out was exciting to them. Eamon then found some shorts in his backpack and a new possibility arose!  Theo just decided to go for it in his clothes and see how much they would dry by the end of the day and Holden, he knew he had clothes to change into!

The girls had a grand time playing “family”.  Luna was happy and self directed when it came to getting naked. Closer to the end of the day Ellie joined her and they both lounged on the warm rocks with utter relaxation, rest and happiness.

Throughout the day we “worked” with fire and materials for fire.  We then  had a contest on who could find the roundest and smoothest rocks and then who could find heart rocks and how many different colored rocks we could find.

Theo LOVES collecting bugs and such. He brought his “bug collector” container and found a dead bee and a dead..?  He and Holden were engrossed in such things.  Eamon loved, finally, getting into the water and playing in there. This took him a while but then he slipped and fell in only to discover that he was so happy there.

All the children worked together with their search for the above things. Ruby and I came to look at the round and smooth rocks as that was the contest. Luna and Ellie decided to work together on this and, as it turns out, they won. When we got back in the bus to leave they were given some gifts. Ellie a stone and Luna a beautiful Oyster shell for digging.

This was a day of ease, exploration, beauty, SO MANY INCREDIBLE BIRD VOICES that we were trying to see and hear more, testing physical limits with climbing over, under and around big logs, and unity as a group. There were some cuts to be taken care of by the Guardians of Safety, Luna and Ellie, and curiosities of the many things around us.  A most wonderful hot day!!!!!