The magic of a field trip

I apologize for another delinquent issue. I am glad I don't work for a newspaper. I have been having a hard time finding the minutes that it takes to write something worth reading, which is still debatable!

This week, I reflected on the wonder and amazement of what a good field trip can do for the amount of joy felt in one's life. On Wednesday, I had to pick up some paper work from the Department of Adminstration office building. Since it was such a beautiful day, I decided to walk. I had a lot on my mind so I walked slowly, having a dialogue with myself, of course. When I talk to myself, I try to do it all in my head so no one will realize that I'm having a conversation with myself :)

On the way back, I walked even slower, not wanting to return to work on such a beautiful day. My pace was barely a stroll and as I looked around, I noticed all the school buses in the parking lots. I remembered all the cool stuff to see in downtown Raleigh: the musuems, the North Carolina history sites, the government officials and buildings. It is quite a city.

I remembered how fun our class trip to Raleigh in the 8th grade had been. Mr. Smith, our Social Studies teacher, had wanted us to appreciate it so much more than we could at age 13. I chuckled at myself because I remembered being a ball of teenage emotion and worrying about who I would sit next to on the bus trip. I remembered that the boy I loved sat next to another girl on the bus which made me jealous. Then my best friend sat with me and we talked about the usual worries of 13 year-olds (boys, friends, high school, etc.). I felt accepted and loved.

According to the pictures I have of that day, the boy I loved walked around with me for part of the day because part of him is in every picture I took. I also have a picture of us sitting together at McDonald's when we stopped on the way home, proof that the trip wasn't a total loss!

I kept walking and decided to sit down in my favorite park. A school group was using the park and picnic tables to eat their lunches and so I watched for awhile. It looked like a young middle school group, probably sixth graders, on the cusp of puberty: insecure yet still able to give in to fun of a game of tag. It was fun to watch and remember.

I noticed one boy who was walking on the edge of the mayhem. He was chubby and walked slowly. I could tell he wanted to be a part but was afraid. My heart went out to him, I knew how he felt. I watched as he kept walking around. He made his way over to three girls playing in the leaves under a huge tree.

These girls were picking up arm fulls of leaves and throwing them into the air and laughing as the leaves rained down on them. Over and over, picking up leaves, tossing them into the air, and laughing. It looked like the best time and I wanted to join them myself!

This little boy slowly approached them and in my heart, I was afraid for him. I knew he wanted to play and they were having so much fun. I watched as he walked up and I said a little prayer in my heart that these little girls would include him and let him play. There was a moment of pause in the tossing of leaves, a few words were exchanged, and then the tossing continued with four kids tossing and laughing.

It was a little miracle to watch. I was happy for that little boy and I was proud of those little girls. I am glad that when they are 30 years old and they have a moment of nostalgia about their class trip to Raleigh, they will remember fun with friends and feeling accepted by others.

Field trips can definitely be a source of much joy in life. Going away to have fun with people you know and love. I suppose this life itself could be considered one field trip afer another, always changing, always going somewhere new, with those I know and love and always making precious memories. Those memories are what warms me when the chill of despair or sadness settles on my heart. I can't help but be warmed when I think about all the good memories of people and places that I have known and loved. What a great trip this has been!