Darek + Stacie

It’s nice outside again, and I can resume my walks around campus. I like to walk by the horticulture area and see all the flowers. This week as I passed several large clumps of summer snowdrops, the wind through the trees above me blew little white petals through the air, which felt like a strange combination of the first snowfall and the first feeling of spring, and the daffodils were shining in the sun near the azaleas.

I wish I could describe it, but I wish everyone could feel what I felt as I walked through that.

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I had an apple for lunch today, and when I was finished I placed the core on the bench beside me and ate my cookie. A few minutes later, a squirrel walked up to the apple core, took a tentative bite, and then picked it up and carried it a few feet away. I watched him eat it for awhile, turning it around with claws that looked a little more threatening than you’d expect from a squirrel. After a few more minutes, he put what was left of the apple in his mouth and ran up the tree,where he continued to eat as he sat about 10 feet above the ground.

I walked up the hill behind me and continued to watch him at eye level because he was just so cute and I was in no hurry to go back inside. And then, I swear–I absolutely swear to you–he stuck his tongue out at me! Did you know that squirrels actually have pretty large tongues for such small animals? Amazing.

I wish I had a camera with me today…