The Lion’s Mane

In the unincorporated town of Springfield, Wisconsin, there was a coffee shop & bike rental, and a small campground in someones backyard.

Not much else.

 As I park in a dirt alley road, I find one more jewel, the White River State Trail.

The mosquitoes are in full force today, but I shrug off their annoyance and head down the seemingly endless path shaped by the trees. Today is about walking with nature, searching for singing birds and wise woodland creatures.

I come to a road with an old man sitting in an idle car. He beckons me closer, looking for directions.

I help him find his path, and wonder if simple acts of kindness such as this are all it takes to be a decent human.

He easily could be my age, as “old” becomes meaningless at a certain point.

I carry on.

Off in the distance, two sand hill cranes forage in the field. Their sounds give me a moment to pause. I follow a bee from flower to flower as she works hard on the stamen, populating new life.

Five miles of uninterrupted greenery in the unincorporated woods of Wisconsin.