The boys had a day off school on Friday, so we drove about an hour to a beautiful area called Montseny Nature Park. It was a bit of a windy drive, and at one point we had to pull over so no one got carsick. The boys tested their aim by throwing rocks and sticks at trees, trying to maneuver them between the branches. I looked at them and saw flashes of them at 3 and 5, and then 8 and 10, doing exactly the same thing.
In some ways, they’re still the same people they’ve always been, just in bigger bodies that can communicate a little more clearly. I’ve found myself wanting to freeze time lately, or even reverse it a little. It seems to be speeding up. Part of that is probably because I have so much less time with them during the week now, but I suppose I need to accept that this is our new normal.
Back to the hike. It was SO beautiful! First, there were some massive trees that rivaled the Sequoias in California. I cannot adequately express how much I love hugging a big tree. They’ve been around for so many years, and they’re still living and breathing and growing, just existing as quiet witnesses to our human antics. The boys were embarrassed, but I managed to get in a few tree hugs.
A little way into the hike, we heard bells jingling. There was a flock of sheep being shepherded by a man and his dog. They were adorable, just wandering through the park. That’s definitely not something we would see in America!
Further down the trail, we started noticing little sea-urchin-looking things scattered on the ground, along with lots of chestnuts. We found an intact one, and it was wild to peel open the very spiky outer shell and see all the chestnuts bundled inside. We also saw people gathering chestnuts and mushrooms with their little foraging baskets. I’d noticed little fire-roasting stations being set up on street corners in our town, and it clicked: they ACTUALLY roast chestnuts here over open fires, just like in the Christmas song. We will definitely have to try them.
The hike reminded us of bits of both Virginia and Colorado. There was so much greenery and beautiful changing leaves, mixed with some cool, rocky mountainous areas. Every half mile or so, Will would ask how much farther we’d hiked, subtly implying that he was ready for a snack. When they were little, I took them on MANY hikes, but I had to fuel Will constantly with little snacks to keep him going. Apparently, this has not changed. I had a sleeve of Oreos up my sleeve.
I felt so grateful watching the boys still enjoy spending time in nature: running through the big open spaces, racing each other to the tops of rocks, pointing out caterpillar eggs on leaves or a colorful bird, and generally being curious about everything around them. We found tree forts (kids in Spain make these too!) and places that reminded us of friends. Our nature journaling group would have loved it here, and Colin’s sword-fighting camp friends would have played out an epic battle scene in one Lord of the Rings looking wooded area.
For a little while, I felt a familiar sense of being at home. Not because the place itself was familiar, but because the experience was. Getting into the middle of nature and noticing the little things together.
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