Tulip trees
When the King walked through the door at 5:45, I was ready to catch the sunset at Hurricane Creek. The kids were hungry, but I crossed my fingers and decided to see if the magic of a place might distract them. And it did.
"Where are we going? What's the rush?"
"I want to catch sunset. I want to catch the way it intersects with the moon at Watson's Bend. I want to smell dusk and the first blush of tulip trees budding."
The King shrugged, changed from his work clothes, and hopped in the car.
Micah at That Bench
On the drive. Micah reminisced about Mr. Jimmy Watson, and how he attended the clean-up and sat on that bench.
The bench that has become That Bench. Jimmy's bench.
She raced to find it-- her first stop.
The girls watching Smoky Joe descend towards the creek.
Then back towards the tipi, where Smoky Joe was making his way down to the creek.
The waters were higher than I've seen them at Clean-Up-- not beginner's waters but swift, high, voracious waters swirled by multiple eddies and rifts.
John threw a few sticks and Smoky Joe retrieved them from the water. I don't think you realize how quickly water moves until you toss a stick and lose track of it almost immediately. Fortunately, Smoky Joe swims fast and knows his way in high waters. He retrieved two sticks before clambering out of the water to shake his fur dry.
Micah wandering towards the tipi.
A mysterious yellow flower on the upper banks.
Moon rose behind yellow flowers.
John re-discovered a soft turtle shell from the year before.
The underside of the soft shell turtle.
Max can't stop laughing about Smoky Joe's antics.
The moon rose along the ochre cliffs.
Very high waters downstream from the Bend.
Sunset... setting the woods on fire.
Max regals Renee with stories of feral cats.
Milla emerges from the tipi to announce the first sparks of a kindling fire.
A fire that ended with laughter, joy, and gratitude.
What you will see when you arrive-- John's tipi, brought from North Dakota to Tuscaloosa.
If you can make it to the clean-up, please come.
Learn more at the Facebook Event page.
If you can't make it, please consider donating anyway to help us sustain the work of our Hurricane Creekkeeper in a very challenging time for waterways and water protectors. We need your help.
Renew your membership or simply make a one-time donation online. We thank you. The water thanks you. The silent, ignored natural world thanks you. Our planet counts on us to preserve more than we destroy, and to honor more than pillage.
