Park Days

Recently I’ve started going to the park more often, there are nice walking paths at our park in town and at a park in a neighboring town.  Our park is fairly young, built on old farm land and they are still developing areas of it.  I like to go there alone because the terrain is hard to push Hillary’s chair around since there are so many ups and downs and she is heavy.  Plus there’s a gazebo there where I like to sit and read or sketch.  It’s near the all veterans memorial and so pleasant when there is a breeze and all the flags are making that little snapping noise as they dance on the wind.  It faces, as well, out over a pond and there are trees and bushes nearby where birds twitter and chirp in the morning sun.  

Looking across a soccer field toward the pond at my town park.

The last time I went there I walked along the paved path until I got to a newer ball field with a dirt road running along it and followed that until it ended with dirt piles on one side and a gate blocking traffic on the other.  The look and smell of it brought me back to childhood and the “new road” by our house.  It was a dirt road edged by wildflowers and weeds on each side and eventually it was paved but for the longest time wasn’t and was blocked off on each end by phone poles.  We walked along that road to get to the local Acme grocery store, my friend Cathy’s house, middle school, and sometimes to walk to church.  I loved the sound of my sneakers crunching on the stones and used to pick Queen Anne’s Lace as I walked along.  Later at home I’d put the flowers into a glass with colored water and watch as they turned blue or yellow as they sucked up the liquid.  Those were nice days.  How pleasant it was to relive those times as I walked in the park, and reflect on nice memories as I sat in the gazebo sketching a tree that day.

         A few days later I took Hillary to the park in the next town over.  The paths there are easy to push her on as it’s flat there and wind through sunny fields and under shady trees giving us a nice mixture of sun and shade so we didn’t get over heated.  I love the smell of a field in the hot summer sun and Hillary enjoys being on the go and looking all around.  Later we found a bench along a tree lined path by the lake and relaxed there, having a picnic lunch and enjoying the beautiful day and scenery.

         A trip to the park leaves me feeling refreshed and rested as spending time in nature generally does.  It’s one of my favorite things to do in the summer months.