Armed with the knowledge of the imminent white stuff, the toddler and I snuck in one more backyard adventure before the wind picked up and the rain settled in.
There was one thing I wanted during my childhood, which unfortunately never materialized, and that was a treehouse. My brother and cousin Wade once built a little shack in a spit of forest behind our cousin's farm in Hubbard - a structure that will forever be linked in my mind to a 5th grade reading of Bridge to Terabithia.
But that unfulfilled treehouse desire lasted well into adulthood. So much so, that when we moved to Warroad, and had kids of our own, I rallied my husband to the cause and he built our kids a treehouse.
We never use the treehouse. Truthfully, the kids never fully embraced their mom's enthusiasm. I reasoned it was because they hadn't grow up with Goonies or Swiss Family Robinson.
But the real reason why the kids probably never use the treehouse might have something to do with the one time I made them go outside to enjoy the treehouse, only to discover a wasps' nest securely attached to the bottom of the platform, resulting in my oldest son getting nailed with 30+ wasp stings.
A bad omen for sure.
The toddler and I clambered up there on a balmy Tuesday this past week. We enjoyed the view onto our oxbow filled with autumn rains, the jetsam of floating foliage, and hunkering dark tree limbs rotting poetically in their watery grave. The little boy had to go to the bathroom and he learned the thrill of releasing his stream into the canopy. We climbed (carefully) around the oak centerpiece, looking for comfortable spots in the crooks of its branches. Looking up, I discovered the tree is dead, save one hopeful twig of golden leaves.
On This Day
Historic Highlights (credits)
1979 - Douglas Adam’s Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy Hits the Bookstores
The first in a “trilogy of five”, the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, or H2G2, is a popular comedy science fiction novel that was first created as a radio show in 1978 for BBC Radio 4. The show and the book follow the intergalactic adventures of Arthur Dent, who escapes the Earth’s destruction. He is accompanied by several other characters including an alien called Ford Prefect, Marvin the depressed robot, and the Vogons who are responsible for destroying the Earth.
1968 - Equatorial Guinea Gains Independence
The African republic was part of the Spanish Empire since the late 1700s. Known as Spanish Guinea, the country became independent and changed its name to Equatorial Guinea under the leadership of President Francisco MacÃas Nguema. In 1972, Nguema proclaimed himself president for life.
1964 - First Multi Person Space Flight
Soviet spacecraft Voskhod 1 carried 3 cosmonauts for the first time to space. It was also the first time the crew did not wear any space suits for the duration of the flight.
1960 - Nikita Khrushchev's Famous Shoe Pounding Incident
The First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union removed his shoe and pounded it on the table during a UN General Assembly meeting in New York. The incident was thought to be a response to comments about freedoms in Eastern Europe made by the Filipino delegate, Lorenzo Sumulong.
1492 - Christopher Columbus Steps Foot on the New World
Two months after he had set sail from Spain with crews on 3 ships – the Santa MarÃa, the Pinta, and the Santa Clara, Columbus spotted land that he believed was Japan. He had, in fact, stepped foot on what is now the Bahamas. Claiming that he was the first one to set sight on the lands, he declared the lands as being owned by the Spanish empire.
Happy Birthday to You!🎶
1875 - Aleister Crowley, English magician, author
1866 - Ramsay MacDonald, Scottish politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
1798 - Pedro I of Brazil
1537 - Edward VI of England
Remembering You
1999 - Wilt Chamberlain, American basketball player
1997 - John Denver, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, actor
1971 - Dean Acheson, American lawyer, politician, 51st United States Secretary of State
1946 - Joseph Stilwell, American general
1870 - Robert E. Lee, American general
Climb a tree, enjoy the view and make it a great Saturday!
Kim
Yes, the clues were there even as a child, the trail of crumbs laying themselves out to a destiny of daydreaming and scheming in magical places.
1997 - John Denver, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, actor
1971 - Dean Acheson, American lawyer, politician, 51st United States Secretary of State
1946 - Joseph Stilwell, American general
1870 - Robert E. Lee, American general
Climb a tree, enjoy the view and make it a great Saturday!
Kim
Yes, the clues were there even as a child, the trail of crumbs laying themselves out to a destiny of daydreaming and scheming in magical places.
Obviously your treehouse isn't OSHA approved. My mother wouldn't approved of it either, seeing the child 'way up there without wearing a safety harness or helmet although she didn't insist that I wear one either when I was that age. In fact, despite her great fears of me falling from a tree, she did let me have a treehouse in our backyard.
ReplyDeleteHer trepidation of all things great and small, mostly tree climbing and horses, stemmed from two great tragedies that happened in her family, the first being that on July 3, 1932 her oldest brother, Raymond, two years younger than herself, fell from a tree when he was but 21, during a bit of horseplay, and broke his neck leaving him paralysed from the chest down. He was in a wheelchair 70 years. The second tragedy was the death of her father, Wilhelm, at age 53, was kicked by a horse.
My treehouse was in a box elder tree that conveniently had three large limbs growing from the same trunk, each spreading upward and outward at about the same angle. Seizing on the opportunity, at some productive point in my life, and probably with the help of friends long forgotten, we fashioned a framework of salvaged 2x4s between them and eventually created a box-like affair, maybe 7-8 feet off the ground. I don't recall a ladder, thinking we had to crawl onto the tree at some saddle and then climb into the treehouse.
I remember it had carpeting in it, some leftover piece from the carpeting Mom finally got for the livingroom. It may even had a trouble-light light fixture in it, but I could be making that up. It was a great place to getaway to and use my imagination. Deer stands are now my treehouses; I have four and am in the process of creating a fifth today! Between rain showers, if I'm lucky.