As I headed out into the Woods, today, I was aware of a group of 4 people just starting out onto the same trail. As it were, they were not far behind me and talking loudly. Not wanting to have the disruption in my “quiet time”, I sought to find a way to be away from them. At first, I thought to step up my pace, in order to out distance them. Realizing that the faster pace was not what I wanted to be doing, I thought to allow them to pass, yet didn’t want to be waiting around for them to do so and to get far enough ahead as to no longer be a bother. I also wanted to step off the path, letting them pass, without them knowing I was even there.
I then asked the Woods to hide me. In good humor, the Maples offered a large clump to stand behind, shortly off the trail. This seemed a little childish and would look silly, should someone discover me hiding there. So, when I came across another access trail, I sought to travel a short distance there, with the tall underbrush to screen me from the main trail. This all seems silly, yet so I was being.
Traveling but a short distance on this alternate trail, I stopped abruptly, and waited. Within seconds of my stopping there, not 10′ away from me, a Douglas Squirrel happened around the side of a Fir, almost at eye level to me, barking a little bit of alarm to me. In what was most likely only a few minutes (though it seemed much longer), this interaction with Squirrel had me beaming a large smile, while I stood absolutely still watching him.
He spoke a word or two and clamored quickly in this direction or that, up, down, side to side, a quick bark and a scurry to the back side of the tree, then just as quickly to right in front of me again. He even stopped to eat something, at one point, in between his forever quick jerks and jaunts, barks and taunts, a handsome guy I just wanted to reach out and pick him up.
All the time he jigged and jagged, talked and taunted, as if he were enjoying performing in front of me as much as I was enjoying his antics. Finally, he started to scurry up the tree, as if to encourage me to move or do something other than just stand there. Up the tree, then back down. Up the tree and down again. Up the tree again and acting like he was going to stay there.
At this point, I began to move on down the trail. But, his voice now changed. It was as if he was now telling me that I really didn’t have to leave. In fact, it seemed as though he were telling me that he preferred it if I didn’t leave. Of course, I stopped and spoke back to him, telling him that I was going to head on my way, in order that he be able to continue what he was up to before I interrupted. Again, he told me there was no need to leave. Yet, I insisted and thanked him for the courtesy.
Still smiling and lightly laughing at this interaction, I headed on my way, knowing that I would not have been blessed with such an event had I not been wanting to evade the noisy people and indeed stopped so abruptly near the tree he was on.
Blessed again.
Peter J Quandt