Draven DeMoan
We walked for a while then reached a spot that was clear enough to climb down to the creek we had been following. They picked up rocks as we went, looking at the different patterns and naming a few that they knew. Pretty quickly, I joined in. The look on their face as they found rock after rock that they held up to show me then put back made my heart so happy. I’ve never seen someone so in their zone and filled with joy over something so simple, yet there we were. I crouched down with them looking for different colors and shapes to show off as well, my eyes scanning quickly over the rocks covering the ground. We lost track of time wandering that creek; picking up rocks to show each other, then replacing them on the dry creek bed. We balanced on rocks trying to keep our feet dry as we continued and reached an area where the creek still had water flowing. We talked and laughed as we went then reached a spot where the rocks were too steep to continue. We shared our first kiss as we listened to the gurgling of the creek and the birds singing through the woods all around us. We spent some time there exploring the rocks, plants and insects we saw; the sun was getting lower in the sky now, so it was time to work our way back to our camp before we got completely lost in the dark.