. . . my story (so far)

I love sharing my love of nature with others. I take walks with my two daughters along our local green belt (Wheat Ridge Green Belt) whenever I get a chance.

My daughters are very accomodating in listening to my stories about nature, but I am 'dumb old (boring) dad' to a 10 year old and a 16 year old.

I have a feeling that someday though my daughters will look back at all the walks with dad and all the experiences we shared:

. . . seeing canada geese take off the lakes, . . . fireflies over the cattails, . . . sitting in the willows watching red fox run across the frozen lakes, . . . the wonder of spittle bugs and ambush bugs, . . . silently walking as the full moon rises through the cottonwood trees,

and I believe these kids will treasure these memories as much as I do.

or maybe not. But as I go through middle age I find myself appreciating more the simple things. I love getting up in the predawn and walking down to the green belt with my border collie and watching the day begin. Sometimes the sunrises are absolutely spectacular! One of my favorite singers, Kate Wolf, I believe understood the magic of the early morning. She writes about it in many of her songs. One of her best is 'across the great divide', where she writes:

'the finest hour is the one

that comes between

the edge of nine,

and the break of day,

Its when the darkness rolls away.'

I love to be on the green belt on mornings after a rain, in midsummer. The spider webs in the meadows are covered with dew droplets, making them look like pearl necklaces. Finding things like that in nature feel like a gift.

I am fortunate to have the chance to share nature with other people in the beautiful state of Colorado. I do volunteer naturalist work for Jefferson County Open Space, and Barr Lake State Park. My work is usually nature walks and slide shows (in the winter).

Click for some of my personal favorite quotes about life