March 19, 2014

Yesterday I smelled dirt for the first time in a really, really long time. I know that’s a pretty odd statement. But yesterday it hit me…..the smell of dirt…..and I realized that it’s been ages since I was that up close to dirt. The kids and I were with our wonderful homeschooling friends which I love to call our “Adventure Club.” We went to Gum Grove in Seal Beach. A beautiful, secluded grove of eucalyptus trees with dirt trails. A wonderful, wide open expanse of nature for the kids to play in. Typically our Tuesday adventures include hikes where we are all on the move. But Gum Grove is different. The moms lay out picnic blankets and create a main location from which the kids scatter in different directions. Some were off picking wild flowers. Others were whittling sticks. Others were creating huts and shelters out of fallen bark, logs and leaves. Some were in sight. Others out of sight. And that’s okay. A year ago I would have been nervous. I would have felt my ‘urban city’ fright of “oh no, the kids have to be within my sight the whole time”, but a whole year of adventuring with these friends has caused me to feel completely okay with letting the kids out of sight at a place like Gum Grove. It’s a mini forest of eucalyptus trees and the kids get to adventure the way I imagine kids did and probably still do in rural parts of our country.

I sat there smelling dirt and loving this life with friends.