The Ilagan twins came for a weekend visit, fulfilling a promise we made to them for a winter weekend retreat, just under the winter wire, as there are a scant few weeks of the season that remain. When last we had them over, it was for our annual Fall Treasure Hunt weekend, a tradition we’ve managed to keep going throughout a pandemic and a world in crisis, and it is a testament to the power of children in keeping the rest of adults sane and focused on what is truly important.
With the sun shining so brilliantly on the snow, and the sky this gorgeous hue of blue, we made our way to the Five Rivers Environmental Education Center (shout-out to my own agency, the Department of Environmental Conservation, for keeping up such an excellent site!) where we met up with Suzie for an import walk along the Beaver Tree Trail. (Lord knows I love a beaver.) Suzie’s daughter Oona joined us and we entered the wintry wilderness.
I will not be revealing the wretched outfit I had to wear to brave the elements, but a hat, a hood, furry pants, and chunky boots were involved.
The blessedly-short and quick trail was just the right length, allowing us to feel removed from the world without an extreme exertion of effort or distance. The charms and enchantments of a forest in winter cast an immediate and effective spell. Here, we were all children again, feeling the wonder of the world all over again, and experiencing a trail for the first time with my niece and nephew will be a memory that I file away for future reminiscences.
With whispers of beavers in the air and some tell-tale/tail signs of their previous presence, I was transported back to my own childhood for a thrilling little remembrance of how much I had read and researched the polarizing creatures as a kit, err, kid. It was a bit of a full-circle moment as we finished up our walk and returned to civilization.
After a wintry expedition, there’s nothing finer than a cup of hot cocoa with extra whipped cream. (We couldn’t find any mini-marshmallows.) After a dinner of Moroccan chicken, we watched a movie (‘Into the Woods’) and headed into the attic for evening traditions.
We resumed our meditation practice, doing our best to clear our minds from school and work worries. I asked them what their intentions were – Emily said she wanted to worry less about things, and Noah said he wanted to have fun. I told them my intention for the weekend was to be more present and in the moment, then explained how all of those intentions tied in together – when you are mindful and in the moment, you get to enjoy and have fun with what’s happening, and when that occurs you also remove the empty space for worrying and stressing about things.
Before bed, Emily read a chapter of ‘The Trumpet of the Swan’ out loud, and I tucked them in with a goodnight hug. We all slept in the next morning, which is how the last day of winter break should be. Our next gathering will likely be for their 12th birthday… when it will be spring again.
