Walk, Interrupted

Last Sunday, my neighbor and I took advantage of the mild temperature to go walking. Although the sky had started sprinkling, we thought, eh – it’s nothing! Instead of staying close to home, we headed out to the wooded path behind our neighborhood. As we hiked farther away from home, the wind picked up and the rain increased … but we stubbornly forged on, thinking the storm was just passing.

By the time we reached the path, however, the drizzle had become a downpour! Laughing at our foolishness but cursing our drenched state, we finally gave up, scrambled up a muddy hill and cut through people's yards to get back to our houses. 

Grimly striding home in clinging wet clothes, we noticed that the rain began to lighten. By the time we almost reached our street, the rain actually stopped and the sun came out. Nonetheless intent to reach home, we hastened along with our heads tucked down when we heard voice up ahead say, "Look!"

We peeked up and saw another (dry) neighbor in front of us pointing behind us. My wet neighbor and I turned around and saw this:  

With our backs to the double rainbow, we wouldn't have seen it! Notice that the colors of the secondary (upper) rainbow are reversed.

We Should Have Walked

Last Saturday, my family enjoyed our first Olney Days Fireworks under the cool night above Olney Manor Park. Even before arriving, we already strategized our leaving; we parked in the front lot of our church Oakdale Emory United Methodist Church and walked over to the baseball field. We thought we were being clever, positioning ourselves for a speedy exit. My Catholic neighbor asked, "Are we allowed to do this?" I answered, "Sure. If anyone gives you trouble, just say you are meeting your friends, who are members, here."

After witnessing the dazzling light show, we left the park and returned to our car to leave... and so did what seemed to be several hundred other people (perhaps an exaggeration -- I'm not skilled in estimating crowd sizes). Of course the mass exodus meant that our exit was not speedy as planned. The wait to get out of the parking lot was longer than the show itself. At least I could continue socializing and spotting people in the dark among idling cars. I surprised a friend I had not see in years when I stuck my head out of my car and yelled, "T-- ? Is that you?")

As we finally pulled out onto Georgia Avenue, I told my husband, "Perhaps we should have parked at P-- and J--'s house behind Roots and walked over. We would have gotten home sooner." The next morning in church, I asked P-- and J-- if they had walked over to see the previous night's fireworks and sure enough, they had. I think they walked to church that morning too.

A Walk in the Park -- Interrupted

Yesterday I took my kids to Buehler Park to play and brought a novel to read while waiting on a bench. No longer toddlers or preschoolers, my kids do not require much assistance and scrutiny while climbing on the jungle gyms. However, I still sit nearby within earshot to intercept any fighting, to watch for any mishaps, and to scare away any creeps.

I noticed a mother hiking on the bike path that winds around the playground equipment. What a great idea, I thought. My kids are old enough that they don't need me underfoot, so I can get a little exercise too. I put down my book and started striding around the bike path, pumping both arms with a water bottle in each hand. I still could watch my offspring cavorting on the equipment and they could still see me.

Nonetheless, one child came running up to me. Uh-oh, worried because you can't see me? I wondered.

"Oh -- are you going to walk with Mom?" the other kid asked.

"No, I'm getting Mom to stop marching before everyone else notices!"