How many people get to say that they have nine miles of hiking trails and streams right in their backyard? I had moved houses five times before I even reached middle school so when we moved to our current home, I didn’t think we would stay more than a couple years, but thankfully that was not the case. When we first settled in, I noticed a path leading into some trees behind our condo building and knew I had to explore. As I walked through the initial thicket of trees on the dirt path, I saw several bird houses in a field of flowers with another trail leading deeper into the woods. I took that trail and soon found that it broke out into three more trails, then into another three, and then another three. I randomly chose a route and crossed
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Whenever I was jumpy or anxious, whether it was over an oral presentation for chinese school or for talking to a crush in seventh grade, I would take a walk and find peace and calm in the steadiness of the trees. Whenever I was annoyed or angry, whether I had a disagreement with my brother or a silly pointless fight with a close friend, I would pull on my sneakers and start sprinting into the woods. My anger induced energy would eventually seep out of me and i’d be left walking down a path contemplating why I was even angry in the first place. Whenever I felt adventurous, I would pack a bottle of water and a snack into a little string bag and head out on a trail i’d never taken before. On sunny days, I would pack a picnic and a blanket and paint with water colors under the shade. I often brought my film camera and took pictures of the birds and plants and the shadows the trees made for my photography projects.
A couple years ago my mother became very interested in researching wild edible plants. We would take long walks and identify the different weeds and shrubs that I had seen so frequently before but had never identified. Just learning even the names of some of the different plants made me realize how much knowledge and information existed and was available to
Whenever I was jumpy or anxious, whether it was over an oral presentation for chinese school or for talking to a crush in seventh grade, I would take a walk and find peace and calm in the steadiness of the trees. Whenever I was annoyed or angry, whether I had a disagreement with my brother or a silly pointless fight with a close friend, I would pull on my sneakers and start sprinting into the woods. My anger induced energy would eventually seep out of me and i’d be left walking down a path contemplating why I was even angry in the first place. Whenever I felt adventurous, I would pack a bottle of water and a snack into a little string bag and head out on a trail i’d never taken before. On sunny days, I would pack a picnic and a blanket and paint with water colors under the shade. I often brought my film camera and took pictures of the birds and plants and the shadows the trees made for my photography projects.
A couple years ago my mother became very interested in researching wild edible plants. We would take long walks and identify the different weeds and shrubs that I had seen so frequently before but had never identified. Just learning even the names of some of the different plants made me realize how much knowledge and information existed and was available to