Animals

In anticipation of today's freezing temperatures and snow, we spent yesterday outside enjoying the last bits of sun.

I took Ella to my mom's farm to see the horses for the first time. My mom kept saying "Most kids are afraid of the horses so don't make her touch them if she doesn't want to." My mom, sometimes she is too cautious. Ella was not the least bit afraid, and the first thing she did was squeal in delight and stick her finger's in Little Guy's nose. There was so much activity - horses sticking their heads out of the stalls, my mom shoveling shit, Kim getting the grain buckets filled, Jack the dog rooting around the piles of muck for dropped horse treats. Ella's head swiveled this way and that, trying to keep track of it all. It was a good time.

If there is only one trait that my daughter inherits from me, I hope it is a love for animals and the natural world. Animals bring me such joy, whether it is the turtles emerging from their winter homes to sun themselves on rocks in the swamp, or my mom's big warm horses sighing contentedly as they eat their dinner. I have felt a kinship with animals my whole life, and a connectedness to the beings and rhythms of nature that has kept me grounded. I hope Ella grows up feeling that same sense of being rooted in the natural world around her.