The Alure of Water - Or "How those country kids amuse themselves"

It's been really warm here lately. Well, warm for January anyway. We had a thaw earlier in this week that resulted in lots of flooding and fun things like that.

 

I remember when I was a kid, the spring thaw was a great reason to get the rubber boots on, complete with shopping bags over the feet because the rubber boots leaked, and got out to the "back forty" (as my brother calls it) and proceed to play in the water.

 

These are the things that parenting magazines warn people against. Imagine it! Sending 2 kids, maybe 3 out to play in the spring run off. It's uncertain how deep the creek is and how cold the water really may be.

 

My brother and I had all kinds of strange spring time rituals. Remember now - we grew up in the country with 50 acres of land to explore. My dad had this GIANT styrofoam block that was used for target practice that had developed a few crevaces in. James and I would take this giant block to the back yard and proceed to try to sit on top of it and not fall in the water.

 

Or what about the times we would dare each other to walk across the deep ditch in the front yard and see who fell in. The hole isn't that deep now (probably only about 2.5 feet at most) but when I was only 4 feet tall this was immense!!! Until the ice blocking the culvert in the hole thawed we had our very own icy cold mud pool!!!

 

Other odd things we did included "filtering" and drinking the run off water. I think old hoses and coffee filters were employed. Pretty disgusting when you stop to consider it's mostly farmland nearby and I'm sure we were ingesting loads of E.Coli bacteria. Amazing we never got sick.

 

Another super exciting thing that happens in the spring (and I speak in the present tense because it still excites me) is when the park in Glen Allan floods. I drive past the park every day on my way to work, and I have to admit that the sight of the river flowing way over it's edges had me stopping to take pictures.   A few times in my life the river has over flown into the park and the water has sat there for some time, coming to just past my knees (I know this because I ventured into the murky water to investigate).

I wish sometimes that I was still a kid and could go outside and play in the water. But then I remember that I don't LIKE being cold and wet and would much rather cosy up in my bed and read a good book.
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alanna foell : professional photographer : www.afphotography.cjb.net