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Trip to the Rappahannock River

April 7, 2015 Adrienne Brown 0 Comments

There are many days in our home school lives when we are sitting,  reading and writing. But this day we decided that it was nice and beautiful outside, so we left our home.  Yep, we just got bored with books, and so we went to the Rappahannock river.

It was so good being out in the fresh air and wading through the cool flowing waters. We found sticks to swirl the rocks around, and started wading deeper into the flowing under currents. Once the water reached my thighs, I decided that we had gone far enough, and I turned everyone back towards the rocks.

There were huge rocks in the water that we used for seats, as we sat checking out the tiny fish that circled our feet. I looked around to see how many other people were enjoying this beauty.  I didn’t see anyone else.  As the sun shone on us,  warming our skin, we sat for a little while longer, talking about the undercurrent.  We decided that the undercurrent kept the water fresh because it was moving. We discussed that the little fish surrounding  our feet, somehow managed to pull from the undertow to come visit us.

The boys remembered that because the luscious  trees and plush bushes had plenty sunlight and water, they were able to produce much chlorophyll to help them absorb light, making them  very green, through the photosynthesis process.

I pulled out the lunch that we packed and served each boy his portion. As we were eating our lunch, we listened to the various sounds of nature. We could hear frogs croaking in the distance, a woodpecker drilling a hole,  somewhere in the vastness of the  trees. Various birds chirping and squawking all around us. Water flowing,  trickling calmly down and over the many boulders and  rocks scattered  throughout  the river.

One thing we didn’t hear was the noise from the traffic. We noticed, that although we were in the city, that it felt overwhelmingly peaceful. It was quiet, as if we were in a serene aura like bubble. That engulfed us in this moment of oneness with our natural surroundings.  It was a wonderful addition to our school days and extremely therapeutic for our souls.

As I looked around, taking in the wonder of this  free time with my boys. They had finished their lunches and was now playing in the water. I felt joy to see the pure fulfilment in their faces. They truly needed and appreciated this break from the books. The boys genuinely thanked me for driving them to play in the river.  Yet,  it was time for us to head back home.

Just as  we were about to leave, a father and his two daughters came walking through the water, with their shoes in hand . We waved and I reflected on the awesome privilege of being  out and about with my four sons during the day. This was a hands on learning session, and a soul rejuvenating experience for us all.

Because it was in the middle of a school day, I figured the family that just passed, were probably  homeschoolers.  Homeschoolers that were taking advantage of the gorgeous weather and the free entertainment from the little fish.

Go ahead, take advantage of some of those warm pretty days, you will benefit in more ways than you know.

 

copyright © 2010 Adrienne A. Brown

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HomeSchool Mom of 8