The Sit - Part 1

Remember my friend Herb? I wrote about him in a post back in July, describing a yearly camping trip I take in his honor. He taught me most of what I know about the outdoors, and that’s where he comes to mind most often. I thought of him today, during a early evening hike with Violet. She’s still at the stage where she loves to touch anything and everything within reach; leaves, bark, flowers, berries – her fingers strain and stretch to reach them all. Some I pause to let her fondle and explore, her mouth slightly open, her eyes wide – a picture of concentration. I try to point out animals to her – a chipmunk scuttling through the trailside leaves or a chickadee perched close and eyeing us up, but they’re usually too small and too fast for her to zero in on. I know she’ll be able to soon enough, and when that thought went through my head, it was immediately followed by Herb's voice, asking the question, “When will she be able to do ‘The Sit’?” Once, on a hike together in some wild place, he told me, “If you sit somewhere for at least 10 minutes, if you can be quiet and still and wait that long, something will happen.” The idea intrigued me and I still remember the first time I tried it – I’ll tell you about it tomorrow…

318 days old