Wednesday, June 22, 2011

For Every Child, A Trail To Walk

If I ever run for office (God forbid) my campaign slogan will be "For Every Child, A Trail To Walk." I'll explain.  Just down the lane from our cabin, a lovely retired couple created the Coffee Walk Trail.  They named it that because you can walk it in about the time it takes to drink a cup of coffee.  It's surrounded by lovely green forest and loops back on itself so that you can't possibly get lost.

They marked the beginning with a gnome and added a small bench along the way.  Then, slowly, other little creatures began to show up along the trail.  Neighbors added treasures and each year the trail has a slightly different, more enchanting look.

Last year, my seven-year-old niece, Miss P came to visit us here for the first time.  One of her delights was to walk the trail.  We did it over and over again.  At first she stayed close to "The Aunties" as she called my sister and me.  We made a game of finding all the little decorations.  On each walk she became more sure of herself until she was leading us, racing ahead and pointing out her own discoveries.

Miss P will return for a visit in July and I'm guessing she will head down the lane soon after she arrives, to make sure the Coffee Walk Trail is still there. She will know the way this year and we can follow her.

So for every child: you should have a place to run ahead, where no one has to shout 'be careful.'  You should have some enchantment in your life so you can dream that anything is possible.  You should have traditions to look forward to year after year.  That wonderful moment when you hold your breath and wonder, is it still there and then you see that yes, the path is still there, still open to me and I know the way.  Come on, I will show you.

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