Nixon Park

The book club I belong to just finished reading a book called "Last Child in the Woods." It was a compelling study on how far away from nature we have gotten, as well as the tole it has taken on us physically, spiritually and emotionally. While I am NOT a "tree hugger" "save the whales" type of person, I do agree with much of what the author had to say. I remember when I was a child how much we played outdoors. We would be out from dawn to dusk. We didn't worry about the "boogie man" or truly "bad" things happening to us. Looking back I realize there were many times when we probably had put ourselves in danger... fortunately we got out of it without serious harm. Oh sure we had our share of injuries and some scars to prove it, however, we had a blast most of the time. If my mother knew some of where we had been she'd have killed us for sure.

I've always enjoyed nature. I love being outdoors (well not as much as I used to now that I live in humid Pennsylvania) and taking in the sights, smells, and feel of nature. The other day after the girls and I had gone to Brown's Orchard, we decided to stop at Nixon Park on the way home. What a beautiful place it is. We started inside. It was fascinating seeing the displays again. I hadn't been there since I went with Emile's 1st grade class. Wow, that was 8 years ago. I was amazed by the butterfly collections. I found that the butterflies from other continents were much more colorful than those here in North America. Their colors were so vivid and beautiful. This picture doesn't do them justice.Emile and Brie fell in love with the polar bear. It was quite the bonding moment as you can see. We all thought this "family" of deer was particularly special. I do wonder how they got these deer though.And how nice, the girls gave the bear some lovins'... isn't that special? I'm not sure he was enjoying it so much.How about these flying squirrels? Aren't they amazing?The point of this outing was to stop and take some time to explore the other things that we share this planet with... and to slow down for a little while. We really did have a fun afternoon. It was relaxing. Heck, how can't you feel better when you see how pretty Nixon Park is, right? Get out there. Take the time to take some time and explore. You'll be amazed at how much better it makes you feel.