"We might as well declare that a child should not speak unless he put his words into poetry, as to declare that he should not draw because his drawings are not artistic."
--Anna Botsford Comstock, The Handbook of Nature Study
The above quote has nothing to do with my son, but has to do with my attitude towards drawing. You see, I've always been one of those "I can't draw" people. I grew up in a time and place where only those who showed talent were encouraged to draw. I'm working on unloading that baggage.
We set out early morning on the day we did this assignment. If we didn't, it would be too hot by mid-morning. We covered ourselves in sunblock and bug repellent, and got on our bikes to head for the neighborhood park. The park is really just a big lot. The original owners of the property on which our subdivision was built had that lot set aside for a neighborhood park. It isn't really used much, but we're glad it's there. Morning sunlight was streaming through the palms.
The first thing Dennis did was look for baby toads. He found plenty, and though they were fast, he was able to catch one and asked me to photograph it.
We spotted these unidentified mushrooms growing out of what once was the base of a palm tree. The tree was likely lost in the 2004 hurricanes.
We both enjoyed seeing the White Peacock (butterfly) and Eastern Pondhawk (dragonfly).
It was now 9:30, and the heat was getting oppressive so we headed for home. On the way, we saw this curious squirrel who is either very brave or not very smart. The red-shouldered hawk will take a squirrel for a meal. My husband saw one do it in our backyard once. The squirrel kept creeping closer to the hawk, who was pretending not to see him. Finally the squirrel came to his senses and ran the other way. I wasn't able to get a decent picture because I didn't want to go into someone's front yard.
When we got home, Dennis drew in his journal. I drew mine, the dragonfly, later in the evening.
