Thursday, May 14, 2009

I Wish I Had Brought My Camera

I wish I had brought my camera today. I almost slung it over my shoulder as we headed out the door, but the skies were dark and the air heavy with mist, so I assumed there would be no visit to the park today. By the time we got to Athens, however, the sun was beginning to peek through the low-lying clouds, proving that meteorologists may actually, occasionally know what they're talking about.

I wish I had brought my camera today. If I had, I would have had the opportunity to capture expressions of...

...delight as the children fed the geese and their goslings. Obviously accustomed to human acts of kindness, the geese bickered with each other as they gathered around, each vying for the biggest crust of bread.

...intrigue as the kids observed a large, varietal range of turtles in the pond. Some were small, tennis ball size with shiny, new shells. The ones that held the most interest, however, were the large ones with long tails. Clearly older, these astute reptiles slowly but intentionally came up to the surface to get their share and to show off their algae-covered shells.

...curiosity as they questioned the myriad of water bugs skittering across the glassy surface of the pond.

...anticipation as we headed for a new exhibit at the park zoo.

...mischievousness as they observed the 3 alligators who occupied the new exhibit; still as statues, the kids schemed ways to get them to move.

...disappointment when the children discovered the otters are no longer residents of the zoo.

...excitement when we visited the bears' exhibit and discovered one bear who was mostly not napping.

I wish I had brought my camera today. Because good days are even better remembered with a picture.

2 comments:

CrossView said...

*sigh* I hear ya! I've said the same thing more times than I can count...

@nnie said...

I agree with the camera thing. I love capturing moments like this (although you did a great job with your words.) But one reason I find it so important, is because I've found from my own childhood that some of my favorite memories are best cemented by the picture my mom took of that moment. It seems like the negative memories are etched in granite in your head, but the good ones blur together. That's why I love blogging the happy moments of our lives for my children to remember.