brenda's thoughts, watch out I'm Christian

One of my favorite comments, which has been said several times, is the honest response "I like reading about your adventures because I have no intention of going out in the woods myself"
One of my least favorite responses is "I'd love to go out it in the woods with you"

No you wouldn't,

Do you like the feel of muddy water between your toes, most people don't
Can you loose your fear of the wood, wild animals and muddy water most people can't

Can you endure the scratches and nicks of brambles to get to the clearing on the other side, most people won't

Let me go in alone, I'll tell you all about it when I get back

Last week I went out to the duck pond,
If your local you might know where that is,
If not...it's at the far end of lake Tobosofekee,
The whole area never got more than knee deep,
I became very good at the shallow stroke,
The water was so churned that the silt level made the lake more like soup,
I could feel the difference with each stroke,
Several times it got so shallow that I couldn't paddle at all, I had to pole,
Then it got so shallow I had to get out and just plane drag it,
There were loons (birds) flocks of them that I would sneak up on and chase away like running at seagulls on the beach
It was fun, except I was in my kayak
I saw no other wildlife, except the beloved Canadian Goose, but it was a pretty busy place, lots of people fishing, lots of noise, if I were an animal I'd hide too
I did find a turtle for my class we named him squirt,
He now resides in his own tank in my classroom with minnows brought in for him to eat

Can't think of anything else that happened, that I can tell you about, continue praying for my students if you already do and start if you don't, they need it bad and hey so do their teachers

Man I love paddling at the lake

I should go more often

I should go every week

I should go every day

I should live there

Man!

So I've paddled across the lake, past the sliders and snappers on logs, past the island inhabited by obnoxious geese, past the pot bellied fishermen and I'm gliding into an inlet in search of the perfect place to get out, stretch my legs, mark my territory, eat lunch, lie on the grass and read the Bible.
I see this spot covered in little purple flowers and think, "how perfect". But then I think, "what's farther in, maybe there's something better up ahead". I feel like there's a metaphor for my life here but I don't care.
I go all the way back, find a little beach and get out. There's an old gravel road that takes me through a forest of wisteria trees the fragrance of which was completely amazing. Watered and stretched out I get back into my boat and head back to the bank covered in little purple flowers to eat lunch and read.
I'm wondering if there's a message in this experience for me. So I crack open the Bible. It falls open to Psalm 139.

"Lord you have tried me

And you know me

You know me when I sit

And when I rise...

(You know me when I'm at work

and when I paddle across the lake)..."

There's a CS Lewis quote written in red over it in my Bible.

"The true Christian's nostril should be continually set on the inner cesspool."

What is the lesson? I'll tell you. I can make my circumstances say anything I want them to. If I really want to know the meaning of life and or my actions or God's desire for my life then I should read the Bible not my circumstances!

God took over.
Sarah called. Jeremy was at MEPS for the night. She wanted to spend time with me. I needed to spend time with her.

She wantd to go mud bogging!

I said, "in your truck".

She said, "No, in your van!"

I said, "No, in your truck!"

She said, "No, in your van!"

She is so spoiled.

And yes we got stuck in a mud hole in my mini van!

Praise God for rednecks. They know what their doing when it comes to mud holes.

I was also able to collect some fossil rocks and tadpoles for my students while we were there.

We had a good time and I was able to relax.

When I got home mom had made spaghetti and let me talk to her till way past our bedtimes.

My student's have a ting they like to say after we finish the Morning Prayer.

I say, "God is good"

They say, "All the time"

I say, "All the time"

They say, "God is good."

Then we begin our day.

There was ice on the grass and leaves,

But the sun was shining

I could hear the drops falling as it melted

The same puddle under the bridge was crisscrossed with ice

I walked on

Absorbed in the happy observation of wetlands that had all filled back up

And in tracks,

The tiniest set led up to the edge of a puddle

When suddenly a crashing of branches and the belly flopping splash of something big leaping into the swamp

I could hear it swim away but I couldn't see it,

Probably a deer or large boar,

I looked down at myself,

I wasn't wearing my lucky sweatshirt,

Dog gone it!

Small Sounds

An unfinished thought...

The tiny sound of wings beating in fright,

Of dew dripping that froze in the night,

...

Within minutes I was absorbed by the silt covered foliage.

All the rains had caused the streams, creeks and even the river to overflow its banks in places. The landscape was changed. Nature wasn't the only change agent at work though. People had left their mark too. Tire tracks, ruts, grooves scared the ground in places. I don't' know who Tommy and Markay are but their love will "endure through eternity". I don't know about their love but their vocabulary is impressive.

I leaned against a familiar tree to eat a few crackers (proactively monitoring blood sugar, growing older sucks) when a beaver or otter waddled from the dried grass into the water on the other shore. I still can't tell the difference. What ever it was, it wasn't interested in entertaining me so I guess that means it wasn't an otter.

Walking in the woods brings out the caveman in me. I was fantasizing about roasting meat; sausage, bacon, potatoes and onions, so I headed for the Waffle House (I should invest in that place).

Clanging and banging dishes

Hollering

"Scattered, smothered and capped"

"Who's washing dishes?"

"I need bacon"

"Me too" I want to holler out. Cholesterol is good for the soul.

My morning activities complete I head home to grade papers, make a big pot of vegetable soup, spend time with my.... (my next article should be titled "my son, my cat and their co-dependent relationship or Manifestations of Negative Attention Seeking"). Youngins!

Here's a copy of a 'letter to the editor' that I intend to send to the telegraph until it's posted or the problem is solved.

"My mother was a child during WWII. She remembers the depression well. She has set out to save the planet one recycled toilet paper roll at a time. She's only recently stopped saving milk gallon jugs. She drives me crazy but she's right. Let me say that again for clarification. She's right.

I'm not a liberal. I have a tendency to put them in the same category as Yankees and people who went to the other high school but on this point they are right. We should be better stewards of our planet.

My great grandmother came to visit from west Texas several years ago. She was dumbstruck by the trees. Trees are what I'm interested in saving, forests full of them.

About a year ago I was out in Oaky Woods with a friend. We were coming back from a search for river access. We are kayakers. We were driving slowly enjoying the day when we came up on a large bird eating road-kill. It stood about two and half to three feet off the ground, with blue-grey feathers and had a sleek head, like a hawk. We watched it for a few minutes before it flew away. The wing span was awesome. (I asked a ranger. He said, "No, it was not an eagle". I disagree.)

On another day I was out there with my parents for a short hike when we came upon the biggest bear I have ever seen in the wild. He easily stood eight feet off the ground on his hind legs. Since we were in a car when he did this, it was wonderful. Yes, we still went hiking that day.

I could go on but you get the picture or maybe you don't. Just about two miles further down that same dirt road is the site of the new "privately owned city" that has caused so much controversy. "No Trespassing" signs now hang from trees where I saw the bear. Houses are being built where I saw the bird. Soon a water treatment plant will be built where we looked for river access.

I won't go into the politics because frankly I don't understand them and thinking about the obvious greediness of the owners only serves to make me angry. I definitely won't say anything about the Governor who sounds like he's done some insider trading, but what do I know. I will say that Oaky Woods is part of a stretch of woods in middle Georgia that has been called one of the few wild places left in the nation. We should be proud; instead we're tearing it down.

Please get involved; call your representatives, call Sonny's office, write a letter to the editor, explain the issue to as many people as you can. At the least buy a bumper sticker. Chuck's Bait and Tackle in Warner Robins has them for a dollar, or you can buy one at http://www.saveoakywoods.com/. Also sign the petition at http://www.petitiononline.com/4gahunt/petition.html

Save Oaky Woods."

I took a short hike the other day, only a couple miles at most and was much disappointed. Not enough boggy swamp and not a long enough walk. I really need to rethink my criteria for a good hike. I sound like a member of the Adam's family.

I did walk up on or was walked up on by a huge deer. I've never seen one so big. It had either six or eight points. I really couldn't count them because I was too obsessed by their possible sharpness and just how close he was to me. But, God is good, I was wearing my lucky sweatshirt (have I told you this before) so he couldn't see me. I was cloaked like a Klingon cruiser (Treky alert). It was really weird because he kept looking right at me as if he knew something was there (I was standing in plane sight in the middle of the road, cloaking devise activated- God is good) but then he would go right back to eating only to look up again after a minute or two. I think I creeped him out.

Saw a couple otters, those guys aren't too bright, my cloaking devise was activated and they were so sure that something was there and they were so curious that they almost came right up to me.

If I could make duplicates of this shirt I could sell it and make millions.

CONSERVATION ALERT
If you love the Ocmulgee River?
If you love the middle Georgia woods?
If you've ever been awed at the silence of alligators or the wingspan of herons?
If you've ever admired the resilience of wildflowers?
If you've ever watched an otter and was too captivated to move?

If you've ever stepped off the beaten path and felt that you never wanted to return?
If you've ever skimmed a stone across the surface of the water
and been glad that there were wild places left...
then
this is the cause for you
go here
 

http://www.saveoakywoods.com

sign here

http://www.petitiononline.com/4gahunt/petition.html

BUT

If your idea of nature's beauty is a well manicured lawn?

If your idea of wildlife is your cat stalking a squirrel?

But

You think wildlife and wild places should be protected?
If you think we have enough golf courses, apartment complexes and shopping plazas?

Then

This is still the cause for you

go here
http://www.saveoakywoods.com

sign here

http://www.petitiononline.com/4gahunt/petition.html