The beauty of Vermont enveloping us, we made our way into Manchester, where we parked the car and began our walking adventure. All I knew was that the Riverwalk was somewhere nearby, and Suzie said it looked like it was fun for kids. I did a quick internet search and found it easily enough, and when we saw its location, we decided to save it until after lunch. 

Lunch would be a sad set of pre-made sandwiches from a place ill-equipped to handle a Saturday rush (the lone worker there had twelve custom sandwich orders ahead of us, hence the selection of pre-made ones). We took them to a bench beside the waterfall near the beginning (or end) of the Riverwalk, where the setting was enough to enjoy the limited food and quell the complaints of picky kids. 

The sun was still attempting to break through the clouds, which made for an interesting and pretty sky. By the time we descended to the Riverwalk (which was really not much more than a path by a stream) slivers of sunlight scattered through the tree-tops, illuminating the little patch of woodland below the stores and cafes of Manchester. 

We wound our way along the path, crossing the stream on a questionable log at one point (I can talk about it now because we managed to survive without incident or fall), then we made our way back up into the village for a dessert of Starbucks (after I listened to Noah tell us where Ben & Jerrys was – and then it wasn’t). We made do with the hot chocolate and brownies there before getting back on the road to return home for the official treasure hunt. 

A long poem of instructions included a stop by our front door to obtain these scarves as talismans of protections against whatever coming Halloween spirits may wish us ill, and the twins gamely wound their excessive length around them for the journey. I’d crocheted them earlier this fall to brush off my rusty crochet needle, and Emi had selected the color schemes for her and Noah on their last visit here. 

(Suzie had instructed me to make them extra long, offering further evidence that I shouldn’t really listen to Suzie, or anyone dressed like this for that matter.) Luckily, folding them into fours turned them into a manageable, if slightly bulky, size. And the twins were just happy to be on another treasure hunt, which wound through the front yard, around the side, and into the backyard. They found all the required elements to result in a spell that found their Halloween goodie baskets magically appearing where we had started off, and Andy was suddenly nowhere to be found, so it couldn’t have been him…

After taking them to a quick dinner at Smashburger, we created a card for Andy and presented him with a gift of maple syrup (the same gift we’d bring their Dad and Lola). While I may have instigated this, they crafted the card on their own that read “Fall vibes coming your way… so we went all the way to Vermont to find you some syrup today!” 

More heartwarming and sweet was what happened after they gave him their present. We were heading back upstairs for a meditation session when Noah paused and went back to Andy and gave him a hug without any prompting. He then rushed back to Emi and told her to do the same – so Uncle Andy got two hugs from two little relatives who love him very much. 

Back in the attic, we lit three candles and I taught the twins how to do a candle meditation. I was expecting more giggles and laughs and tomfoolery, but once I set the timer for five minutes, they quieted instantly, closed their eyes, and went into their deep breathing for the full five minutes. I followed that lead and kept the breath steady and deep, and when it was over and the phone gently chimed its time up, Emi asked if we could do another two minutes, to which Noah exclaimed that was exactly what he was thinking. So we went two more minutes in silence and peace. It was the highlight of my weekend with them. I took a quick photo in the dim light, which is at the end of this post and the start of the first one – it looks like some enchanted painting rather than a phone photo, proof that some things in the world are not to be fully understood, that such enchantments can only be felt and experienced rather than explained. 

[This is apparently a drawing of me in my floral shirt.]

We watched a couple more movies, called it a very late night, and everyone went to sleep almost instantly. The next morning we moved slowly into the rainy day before heading over to dinner at Lola and Lolo’s. Another Fall Treasure Hunt weekend was in the books, and at eleven years old, the twins may not have many more in them, so I’m treasuring this one and savoring the joy and love it contained.

One of the only things that didn’t get canceled in 2020 was our annual Fall Treasure Hunt with the twins. This year may have surpassed last year’s doozy, even without the smoke machine and painted pumpkins, as we had a whole weekend of fall adventures that led us all the way to Manchester, Vermont.

It began after school on Friday, when I picked Noah and Emi up from Amsterdam and we arrived to pretzel bites and pizza, which we ate on the patio, taking advantage of the last lingering warmth and sunlight of early October. In a year in which just about every single weekend has been marred by rain and foul weather, this was a gift. The twins settled their things into their attic room and we went over the rough itinerary for the weekend (they seemed to enjoy an agenda even more than I enjoy creating one!) 

After that, we moved into the cellar, where Noah practiced his pool table skills while Emi illustrated her sewing and drawing prowess, creating some of the artwork you see here. I’d planned on reading them a few of the milder stories from the poorly-written childhood classic ‘Scary Stories to Tell Children’ which was more about the frightening illustrations than the stories themselves. 

We decided to do that early in the evening so they wouldn’t have to go to bed if there was a fright conjured, and that was wise planning. I lit candles and read to them from the chaise lounge in the corner of the attic while they huddled in the safe zone of the bed. They only wanted two – well, Emi was game for more but this was a democracy, and I wanted this to be a fun weekend, not something too traumatic this early on.

From there we went back downstairs and did a bracket to vote on which movie to watch that night. (The only way to determine such things is through a voting process because with these twins there is no such thing as compromise or agreement.) I could be the deciding vote if it was tied, and thus it was that ‘Sleepy Hollow’ was selected from a field of eight other contenders. We’d employ this process for all the movies we watched.

Once the movie was done, we ascended to the attic bedroom once more, where I sat them down to do our first meditation session. As expected, it was filled with laughter and an utter inability to focus and actually meditate, but that’s the point of the first lesson. We needed that outlet for the silliness and the novelty of the practice. Setting the timer for exactly five minutes, we did at least two in deep breath and silence, and that was about the best we could have gotten. I tucked them into bed, even though it was still rather early. I was exhausted and went right to bed.

The next morning we got up and I made them a couple of breakfast sandwiches before hitting the road to Manchester, Vermont and our planned riverwalk experience. Suzie had found it on the previous week’s outing, and it looked like the perfect destination for two young adventurers. 

On our way, we paused at the little stream behind the former Candle Mill so I could show them where their Dad and I used to dip candles when we were kids. We got as close as we could and posed for photos before the stream. Another generation touched by the beauty of Vermont in this little section of a stream, and a fall memory of mine is now infused into a fall memory of theirs. Legacies aren’t always formed from efforts of majesty or might. 

The air was chilled, but the sun was fighting its way through the high clouds, and as long as there was no rain, this would be a happy day. The twins seemed energized by the change in scenery, and I too felt invigorated by the beautiful environs surrounding us. 

We got back in the car and drove the rest of the way to Manchester… [To be continued.]