Mama Carson... Across the Pond and Back Again...: Ooh, Look at All the Nature!!

Saturday, April 17, 2010

Ooh, Look at All the Nature!!

There was beautiful sunshine in Wales today despite the fact that there is an invisible cloud of Icelandic volcanic ash somewhere up in the stratosphere over our heads. So all of us girls threw on our sun dresses and set out (with George, who opted not to wear a dress) to the Amelia Trust Farm in Barry. We spent a little bit of time checking out the animals, including the lovely new baby lambs. But we mostly enjoyed the garden and the forest trail (also knows as the Wild Piglet Trail).

Lili was completely enchanted by the experience. She was anxious to explore every leaf and stick as well as my shiny earrings. I enjoyed vicariously experiencing her awe and curiosity. To her EVERYTHING is new and worthy of exploration. Typically for Lil, exploring involves grabbing the new item and chewing on it with her drooly, gummy mouth for as long as it remains pleasant. Often we grown ups forget to notice all of the little, ordinary, awe-inspiring miracles around us: flowers, dew drops and butterflies. Babies are good at reminding us to look as if it were the first time and to really see the beauty and busy-ness of life that is all around us.

At one point, George also reminded us all that if we got really quiet, we could hear the sounds of life all around us. So we did. And it was lovely to hear bumblebees and countless different birds. They were there all along, but we just didn't notice. As "New Agers" would say, we were not fully conscious of all that was happening around us. Wrapped up in our cozy, modern homes (which I am a big fan of-- don't get me wrong), it is easy to forget about what is real and beautiful out there in the woods. Driving around in our cars, sitting at our computers, we are disconnected from what is organic... and we don't even realize it.