In Tea

 

In Tea the host is simplicity and the guest elegance.
If all is done in sincerity it is better
than a thousand graces.

Matsudaria Naritada

Entertaining with Nature

September is a wonderful month for picnics, projects and activities.  The weather is conducive to exploration and plants and trees are mature and starting to seed. The weather is still warm enough for an outdoor campfire and picnic.  A nature guessing game can provide entertainment that includes the outdoors and is fun for all ages. 

Give each person a grocery bag.  Label each one with a different number on the outside.  Be sure the grocery bag is not opaque, because you don't want people to be able to see shapes or shadows of what's inside.  Have everyone go outside for a walk in the woods, a park, or the back yard.  Each person is to find and gather five different items that they find.  Make sure they don't collect live things, but other nature objects instead. Things to look for could be pine cones, leaves, rocks, seeds, seed pods, an acorn, a feather, a stick, fallen pine needles, and more. Set a timer for 15 minutes and then have everyone return to a central location.

When everyone has returned, have them sit in a large circle.  Give each person a pencil and paper. Have each person pass their bag to the person on their right.  Allow them one minute to feel what's inside the bag, guess what it is, and write the names of the items in the bag on their paper. Make sure they write the bag number on the paper along with the names of the objects. 

Then, continue with the next person's bag and so on, with individuals writing the names of objects guessed on their paper.

After all the bags have been explored, have each person show the items in their bag and tell about it.  As they do this, everyone should check their papers to see how correct they were. 

Although this game is very simple, it is fun, entertaining, and educational for all ages! What a great way for all ages to enjoy a nature activity together.

Spring Picnic

Pack the picnic basket 
with all the foods we love,
take along a frisbee, 
a baseball, bat and glove.


Bring a blanket to sit upon,
bug spray, and sunscreen, too,
get the kids into the car
with the dog, and me and you.


Finally we are on our way
to have a day of fun,
searching for the perfect spot
to frolic in the sun.


A grassy knoll and shade tree
beside a lazy creek; 
pull over, this looks just right
for a picnic quite unique.


Setting up a lavish feast,
joy we can't contain,
our happiness is dampened
when it begins to rain.
by Carol Gioia


Click twice on collage for larger view.

Dry Falls Picnic

According to our local newspaper, this has been the third coldest April on record.  Last night the wind machines in the neighbor's apple orchard were working away because of another very cold night.  Even though we've had some lovely, sunny days --- it is still cold!  Ever eager to enjoy the great outdoors, even on chilly days, opportunities for long drives and picnics are created.  With snow still in the mountains, we've had to look for alternatives to forest adventures.

This day we ended up at a place called Dry Falls.  From the top of a three and a half mile-long precipice we could observe tiny dots of fishing boats in the blue lake 400 feet below.  Dry Falls is thought to be the greatest known waterfall that ever existed!  It is ten times the size of Niagara falls.  According to geologists, water flowed at over 65 miles an hour over this precipice, a rate which is ten times the current of all the world's rivers combined.

What a sight that would be to behold!  But the ice age activity is past, leaving only clues as to what went before.  Barren, rocky landscape for miles around share the story of ice age mysteries that geologists work now as detectives to solve.  There is beauty in all of God's creation, even in the dry, barren remoteness of central Washington.