Morning Walk, Forest Encounters

Hiked into Frick twice in the past week- I've been craving physical activity and sweating along with woodland peace. :) The Black-eyed Susans are everywhere, water is flowing, big and little butterflies are dancing together in whirls, tiny frogs are hopping. Didn't hear or see many birds, but the forest silence and gentle, rushing streams were blissful.

On one hike I took the trail along Nine Mile Run , something I rarely do because I get so sad about the garbage that builds up there. At one point last summer I was taking a bag there with me on hikes so I could carry some trash. When more and more kept appearing, I got discouraged and just quit walking there. I'm not sure if it's a monetary issue, a lack of volunteers or organization, or simply that the onslaught of garbage is too much for regular maintenance to take care of. The stream is unhealthy, which the Nine Mile Run Watershed Association says is typical of an urban stream. After all of the finances, time, and energy invested in restoring the aquatic ecosystem and the wildlife there (it really is remarkable to see the changes!), though, the stream continues to struggle with a human-caused blight. :( Looking into ways to help more. Until then, focusing on the beautiful along Nine Mile Run and in Frick Park!


Met a sweet little frog on my hike today! I asked if I could take her picture, and she said I could as long as I didn't reveal her true identity. I promised not to.

Frick Park Lushness!

Recent visits to the park. Loads of lush, thick greenery from so much rain and lots of butterflies gathering on the damp paths. The one in the picture I snapped above is a Red-Spotted Purple. :)

Peaceful as always. I need to go more often. Posting some video, too, just to share the forest sounds- have a listen!

Peace in an Unexpected Place

I've always associated cemeteries with sadness and grief, with creepy noises and spirits at unrest, with darkness and fear. I've had friends who loved to do rubbings of gravestone inscriptions in very old grave yards, but I never understood the appeal until last year when T and I ventured off of our hiking trail into Homewood Cemetery near Frick Park in Pittsburgh.

So anyway, on to our walk...

We discovered a quiet, serene world where birds sing, deer and groundhogs play, and squirrels chase one another. Beautiful trees and flowers, rolling landscape and lots of green. A gothic beauty and sense of history and mystery. Refuge. Walking there, unexpectedly, is peaceful. There, I feel connected to the earth, the cycle of life, a universal spirit, and to myself. It's become a favorite place.

Home to 600 trees and a lily pond, Homewood cemetery is unique in that buried there are people of all religions and ethnicities and social classes. There is a Chinese section, and Jewish, Muslim, Quaker, Greek Orthodox and Indian sections. Military veterans, members of law enforcement, fire protection and emergency rescue are recognized for their contribution to society in a special dedicated section, the “Garden of Honor.” Founded in 1878, people are still being buried there even today. It makes for a kind of history book.

Walk in the Snow

Monday gave us what may be the last snow fall of the year. Winter is my least favorite season, so normally I can't wait to see it end. But this year, despite my adoration of Spring, I have been reluctant to see the winter go. After the crazy warm weather we saw scattered throughout the past couple of weeks, I was feeling uncharacteristically sad about the coming of a new season. So this beautiful, gentle, brilliant snow was a hugely welcome blessing. :) We celebrated with a hike in the new layers of white in the woods of Frick Park. The forest was quiet, the sun was bright, and the sky was an unbelievable shade of blue. Our steps were some of the first to break the pristine blanket that has fallen upon the park's paths. Blissful.