Late this afternoon, Nick went with me to walk Teddy. Usually I go alone when it gets this late, but Nick wanted to do the walk that was required for his Tenderfoot rank in Boy Scouts. He only needed to complete a quarter mile, but we went two, our minimum walk for Teddy on a rainy day. We parked at the Snoqualmie Valley Trail on Lake Alice Road. That's our home trail and where I walk with my friend Rachel and her dog Rex when we don't have time to linger.
Nick laughed at the way Teddy raced along the muddy ditch, looking as though he was wearing long brown socks. We only walked two miles, but Nick was tired near the end. I liked having him walk with me. At dusk, the weather turned gray and a mist layered in my hair. I didn't feel really wet, but I could smell the rain on me.
It was nice having Nick come along because it seemed like we'd been arguing so much in the last couple of days. Here, he was easier. We pretended he was a ranger. These days, he wears the brown cloak that I made for him, thanks to the book 'The Ruins of Gorlan' by John Flanagan. This afternoon, I read two more chapters of that first book of the Ranger's Apprentice series to Nick because he wanted to try to take a nap. Napping is not easy for this boy and I tried to make it as much like bedtime as I could, but he still didn't fall sleep. I suppose that the action in this book isn't all that conducive to sleep, but that's the price of a good book.
In the beginning of the story, we find a small boy, Will, who doesn't know where he fits into life at the castle. He's pushed around by the bigger boys, but he has the natural gifts of stealth, curiosity, and integrity, so that, Will is chosen to be apprenticed to a ranger. At first, since the role of the rangers is a mystery, Will isn't sure he even wants to be one. By the middle of the book, however, he's hooked and has begun to shine.
Nick has totally identified with this book and we both look forward to reading it.
"Mom, would I make a good ranger?" he asked as we walked.
"Yes, you would."
"I'd be an old-time ranger, before guns and grenades. I'd wear a cloak and shoot a bow."
"A true ranger would walk silently sometimes," I mused. We each walked about ten paces before we were talking again. I didn't really need him to be silent. I just wish I were more silent sometimes.
"I'm pretty good with my bow and arrow," he said.
"Yup, and you get better when you practice," I said. I'm not easy on my boy, but I hadn't meant it as criticism and he didn't take it as one, thankfully.
"And I have fire in one hand and ice in the other." I laughed. He's blended the characters from the Ranger's Apprentice with those of his newest video game, Skyrim. I haven't played, but Nick says that the beginning is easy and I'd be able to keep up. I just don't enjoy playing video games. My hands always hurt when I'm done and I tend to hunch my shoulders too, so it isn't a relaxing to me the way it is for Mike and Nick. I'll leave all the monster-killing to them.
On the way back, we spit off the bridge. It takes a slow count to four to hit the ground or the stream below. Then we tried to coax Teddy into going through the tunnel. He wouldn't go. He might be too big to be comfortable in it now. Then we tried to get Teddy from whining for his friend, Beau, at the gate to his backyard. It would be nice to live right on this trail. I wonder if I'd take it for granted, the moss in the trees, the sapsucker that I see in the same place almost every time, the familiar faces of others with their dogs.
And then, as we approached the parking lot, we were rangers no more ... until later, when, Mike and Nick were snuggled on the couch with their PS3 controllers.
"Dad, do you think I'd make a good ranger?"
Thank you for listening, jb
Nick laughed at the way Teddy raced along the muddy ditch, looking as though he was wearing long brown socks. We only walked two miles, but Nick was tired near the end. I liked having him walk with me. At dusk, the weather turned gray and a mist layered in my hair. I didn't feel really wet, but I could smell the rain on me.
It was nice having Nick come along because it seemed like we'd been arguing so much in the last couple of days. Here, he was easier. We pretended he was a ranger. These days, he wears the brown cloak that I made for him, thanks to the book 'The Ruins of Gorlan' by John Flanagan. This afternoon, I read two more chapters of that first book of the Ranger's Apprentice series to Nick because he wanted to try to take a nap. Napping is not easy for this boy and I tried to make it as much like bedtime as I could, but he still didn't fall sleep. I suppose that the action in this book isn't all that conducive to sleep, but that's the price of a good book.
In the beginning of the story, we find a small boy, Will, who doesn't know where he fits into life at the castle. He's pushed around by the bigger boys, but he has the natural gifts of stealth, curiosity, and integrity, so that, Will is chosen to be apprenticed to a ranger. At first, since the role of the rangers is a mystery, Will isn't sure he even wants to be one. By the middle of the book, however, he's hooked and has begun to shine.
Nick has totally identified with this book and we both look forward to reading it.
"Mom, would I make a good ranger?" he asked as we walked.
"Yes, you would."
"I'd be an old-time ranger, before guns and grenades. I'd wear a cloak and shoot a bow."
"A true ranger would walk silently sometimes," I mused. We each walked about ten paces before we were talking again. I didn't really need him to be silent. I just wish I were more silent sometimes.
"I'm pretty good with my bow and arrow," he said.
"Yup, and you get better when you practice," I said. I'm not easy on my boy, but I hadn't meant it as criticism and he didn't take it as one, thankfully.
"And I have fire in one hand and ice in the other." I laughed. He's blended the characters from the Ranger's Apprentice with those of his newest video game, Skyrim. I haven't played, but Nick says that the beginning is easy and I'd be able to keep up. I just don't enjoy playing video games. My hands always hurt when I'm done and I tend to hunch my shoulders too, so it isn't a relaxing to me the way it is for Mike and Nick. I'll leave all the monster-killing to them.
On the way back, we spit off the bridge. It takes a slow count to four to hit the ground or the stream below. Then we tried to coax Teddy into going through the tunnel. He wouldn't go. He might be too big to be comfortable in it now. Then we tried to get Teddy from whining for his friend, Beau, at the gate to his backyard. It would be nice to live right on this trail. I wonder if I'd take it for granted, the moss in the trees, the sapsucker that I see in the same place almost every time, the familiar faces of others with their dogs.
And then, as we approached the parking lot, we were rangers no more ... until later, when, Mike and Nick were snuggled on the couch with their PS3 controllers.
"Dad, do you think I'd make a good ranger?"
Thank you for listening, jb
No comments:
Post a Comment