My Grandson

Trips to the dunes must inspire me. a year ago, I saw this canoe in the early stages of completion, while touring the Nature Center in the middle of its renovation. Six months ago I visited during the cold cold winter and happily anticipated the birth of my first grandson. Needless to say, I have made a bazillion trips up here to see him since he was born on April Fool's Day! Time to write again...a lot has happened in the last year.

Today, my daughter and I took Asher to see that Nature Center, all finished and remodeled and receiving company. We marveled at the exhibits and I carried him around and showed him each one and told him how they were not ready a year ago! I was very interested in canoes last year at this time, and look at us here, sitting in that very birch bark canoe that we first saw a last summer, half covered in tarps in expectation of display for children just like him.

Asher is interested in everything. He particularly loves animals and pictures of them. Today at the Nature Center we saw the squirrels outside at the bird feeder and then a picture of one on an exhibit. I held him up to the turtle cage, he peeked at garden snakes. We climbed around on the exhibit that explains ship wrecks and we even let him peek through a porthole. I firmly believe that he enjoyed it as much as his mommy and I did. Seeing the world through his excited and curious eyes is beyond description. Having a little one to take places like this and show the wonders of this beautiful earth is a precious gift. His mommy grew up in wonderlands like this, in state park after state park. And so did his Nana. My Dad took us and engendered a love of nature and its exploration that still fills my soul with sweetness. I will be sure that my grandson is similarly blessed.