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| Walking along our Trail |
As the semester progresses, I am getting in to the routine
of things. Fall break is right around the corner, parents weekend has passed
and midterms are next week. Each week is starting to pass by quickly and I am
starting to wonder where my senior year is going.
This class has been a great change of pace in the busy-ness
that is my semester. I am so used to sitting in the classroom, listening to
lecture after lecture, or wasting away in the library, hunkering down over my
accounting textbooks and wondering when I will ever leave the table. However,
it puts the world in perspective and makes you appreciate the little aspects of
life.
This past week was our third visit to the Fort Worth Nature
Center. This time and the last time we visited the nature center, we helped out
by filling out the uneven surfaces on the trail. In order to do this, our team
shoveled dirt and clay rocks that was piled up on the side of the trail on to
the uneven places on the trail. We filled up the irregular places that may be
unsafe for trail walkers by moving the dirt to these areas, raking the dirt to
make it even, and then packing it in.
The task of moving one pile of dirt to another pile of dirt
seems like a repetitive and pointless task at face value. However, it is great
to go out to the Nature Center, be outside and do something for the community.
The officials at the nature center were so thankful and kept saying how much we
really helped them out.
Beyond just evening out the surface of the trail, our team
walked along our trail a bit. We were all taken aback by the beauty of the
trail. There were some sections that were completely shaded by trees, and
others that were submersed in sunlight. It was beautiful and wonderful to be
outside on a sunny day like last Tuesday.
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| The part of the trail our team evened out |
Additionally, our trail was right by the bison habitat. We
were able to see some of the bison (pictured below). I had never seen them
before, so it was definitely a treat to see. There was one bull, plenty of
females, and a few babies. They had thick and tangled fur coats and beady black
eyes. The bison all stayed together in the pack, eating the grass, relaxing,
and sleeping. When we stumbled upon the buffalo, my team stood there for a
while and just observed them. They were beautiful in their own way and I
admired that.
At the end of our visit at the Fort Worth Nature Center for
this week, my team walked back to our cars, admiring the beauty of our trail
some more. It truly is a pleasure volunteering at the nature center this
semester. It has brought a lot of perspective to my eyes, slowing down the pace
of the semester for me. It allows me to take a step back, appreciate everything
that is around me, and see the bigger picture in life. I have learned a lot
about not only about the work it takes to up-keep a trail, but also about the
importance of getting out in nature. Nature has endless benefits to physical
and mental well-being. It is so hard in the busy schedule of our lives to make
time to slow down and enjoy the outdoors, but this is so important. This class
has truly imprinted this in me.
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| Bison on our Trail |
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