Today I observed my children from a distance in the woods. I sat on a felled tree and watched them: crunching leaves, climbing trees, looking up into branches with a monocular.
They fell.
They held hands.
They found new paths.
There were natural pauses in running and playing: a head cocked to one side, a pause to catch breath.
Ehsan’s eyes grew wide when a pack of deer slowly sauntered by him. My husband whispered, “Stay back, don’t move.” Later, he waded to his ankles then rolled up his wet khakis and continued, soaked and muddy.
Eliana crawled backwards on her knees on a log that accidentally led to muddy waters, reversing when she realized her mistake. Eloisa’s feet became stuck when her shoes sunk into thick brown muck, but Ezzy pulled her out. She ducked under a sideways trunk when her first attempt at climbing over didn’t work.
I barely moved. I snapped some photos. I smiled at the sun hitting my face. I listened absentmindedly to my husband ask when I would feel comfortable traveling again. I murmured an incomplete, undetermined answer.
All I could think was this is enough. Let them fall and get dirty and get up again, holding hands. Let them linger in discomfort and learn. Let them figure out how to go under or over and through. Let them find solutions to roadblocks, in nature and beyond. This is enough.
Slice of Life, Day 13
Nawal, you are a philosopher and a fierce mother of four. I think Kate Messner needs to read your blog because she’s written Over & Under The Rainforest, Over & Under The Snow, and Over & Under The Pond. But she hasn’t written about going through, holding hands with your siblings. When your gently inquired about traveling again, there was an ache in your reply. Thank you for writing in such a way that I feel like I was a part of this memorable experience with. Mother Nature.
This is so lovely, your watchful eye appreciating the exploration of your children.
How beautiful to just sit and be, watching your kids find joy in nature. I enjoyed picturing these moments from your seat on the tree.
Yes, you’ll travel again, but I loved the undercurrent in this piece, the one of being okay with figuring out the way forward from exactly where you are. And those pictures!
You got your time in the woods! I love the spareness of your descriptions, letting us fill in the blanks, imagining your children at play in nature. It was perfect, just that way.