Wild things

While awaiting the arrival of number two, I am loving spending time with grandchild number one. Walking in the "forest" is a particular pleasure. We talk about nothing and everything, while he collects sticks, kicks through the leaves and looks out for squirrels. He elects to walk rather than ride these days and only gets back into the push chair when his legs get tired. I try to tell him the names of things and he tries to memorise them, maybe one day he will be able to pass something on to another generation.

There was a time when I knew the names of most of the wildlife that I came in contact with. It was deemed important when I was a kid, to be able to identify things in case you were tempted to eat anything that was toxic.  In a time when food was scarce, being able to find free food was a great bonus, and I am sure that I could have survived in the wild had I needed to. There is a plethora of food out there and it is only because people are so well fed today that the knowledge is dwindling.

It would be nice to think that Oscar can look and see an oak or a sycamore, rather than just a tree, and to know that stinging nettles hurt and that dock leaves can give a little relief from that pain. He should know that hemlock is poisonous and that toadstools with white gills probably are too. However the most important knowledge is learned from necessity and I hope that he will never need to look for food in the wilds.

In the meantime, we have fun and at his age that is probably the most important thing. I am so happy to share that with him while I can.