The pressure increases as things continue to draw closer to a few important dates: Lease ending, hubby getting a job offer, and trying to find a new place to live. I needed a break from all that, so of course I do what I do, and go out to paint! I had been to Robie Creek in the winter and found it to be lovely. Going back in spring ought to prove interesting, I thought.
I was so right! There was this incredible growth of little neon-yellow flowers that exploded where the water had drained away from the riverbank. This area was neon gold. Photos and paintings aside, I could not capture the magic. What was already beautiful, a few families of geese and their goslings wandered about rather close by.
One of the things about plein air painting, if you stay still and quiet, the animals come right up to you. You're just a part of their landscape. The goslings were in that strange in-between of being babies to teenagers, just like humans--gawky.
Naturally this made me think of the humans in my life at such age. My niece and nephew, for starters. Its wild watching them grow up so fast. My nephew struggles with the awful affliction of social anxiety, but I hope he grows out of it. It can be hard coming out of the shell as a kid. I feel a variety of ways about the current affairs of gender norms and how this impacts someone like him. I hope he finds his path before regular life pressures consume him. He has a passion for sports stats, like basketball. He has a gaming channel on YouTube and in general, he is insecure about like--everything. He's a great kid and I feel so much sympathy that he has to go through puberty. Just like these little goslings. Some of them stay close to the adults but there is one or two of each group that wanders away from the group to explore. Time flies, no pun intended.
Soon, I will be flying my own nest and settling somewhere new. But for today, painting and enjoying what is left of my time in Idaho.
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