When I was up at the cabin about two weeks ago, I was able to enjoy the beauty of nature firsthand. There is nothing better than watching a sunrise or sunset while on a lake or sitting on shore. I believe that my sons and grandsons have learned to appreciate the beauty of nature as much as I do. You can find the beauty of nature everywhere if you just take time to pause and observe what is around you.
As a child growing up in the country, I learned to appreciate nature and the beauty of the moment. I can remember walking across an alfalfa field just after it had been mowed and bailed. The stubble of dried alfalfa was like needles as I attempted to navigate the field in my bare feet, which was how I rolled in the summer. I would see grasshoppers and leopard frogs jumping in the stubble of what was once a lush green field.
I can remember my mother telling me that I should always wear shoes when riding my bike or I could get my toes cut off in the bike chain. I still have them (the toes), but I did have a few close calls. This is how we kids learned, not by minding our mothers, but by finding out what it is to stub a toe or pinch one in the bike chain. It made you think twice about doing it again, but that did not stop me from repeating the same mistake a couple of times before I learned. As soon as school would get out, I would shed my shoes, so I could walk barefoot in the grass. You needed to watch out for dog doo and bees, both of which I would occasionally find. After a few weeks, my feet would toughen up and it was easy going. For two or three summers in a row, the first thing that I would do was stub my big toe on the sidewalk. I would then be walking around with a couple of band aids on my toe until it healed. Lesson learned, at least until the next summer.
Summer also meant hanging out at “the bridge” catching minnows and hoping to spot some fish as they navigated their way between Goose and Fountain Lakes. Sometimes we would ride our bikes to the “mink farm” and fish for yellow belly bullheads and sunfish. We would stop at the slaughterhouse and buy horsemeat from Willie Schneider. He would chunk it up for us and package it for a quarter. The bullheads and sunfish loved it, and we would catch those big yellow-bellied bullheads and some really big sunfish. I would take a tin aspirin box with a couple of hooks and washers in it and wrap some fishing line around it, so it would fit in my pocket. Once there, I would find a small branch off of a willow tree and tie the line to it with a hook and a washer for weight. My mother showed me how to make a bobber out of an old thermos bottle cork, which also fit easily in my pocket.
I would spend most of a day there, fishing and exploring the shoreline. My pantlegs would usually be soaking wet by the time I left for home, but they would be dry by the time I got there. I would let my mother know ahead of time where I was going so she wouldn’t worry. This was just me and a couple of friends being kids and having fun doing it. We didn’t have any organized activities to occupy our time; we had to use our imaginations and make our own fun. This is how we learned to be creative and appreciate nature.
Please show your support for our troops who are deployed. These service men and women are making that sacrifice, so that we may have the many freedoms that we enjoy today.