Cesar Chavez Park

Today was a rare perfect January day in Northern California. It was sunny, moderately warm and held just a hint of briskness, so we decided to take advantage of the weather and go to Cesar Chavez park in Berkeley. (It's located right off the bay and people fly kites, walk their dogs, bike ride, sail, picnic; pretty much any kind of outdoor activity you can imagine.)

The boys ran around and just thoroughly basked in the freedom of non-confinement. I taught M how to roll down a hill and soon both boys were rolling away and having a blast...albeit rather clumsily. B collected rocks and stored them in his pockets and both boys wielded sticks like swords. At one point M pretended his stick was a broom, placed it between his legs as though he were riding a horse and proudly announced that he was a witch.

The boys took turns leading us through tunnels and caves created by overgrown brush and tried to chase squirrels. The squirrel chasing was quickly called to a halt by Papa Bear who seemed concerned that they may actually catch up with one. I'm guessing that will never happen, but one never knows.

We walked, ran and rolled around for about two hours until M realized that he was thirsty and insisted that we go back to the car and get some water immediately. All of a sudden the boys seemed to deflate, and their seemingly boundless reserves of energy evaporated as they each demanded to be carried all the way back to the car.

All in all it was a glorious afternoon, and though the boys will probably have no memory of it, it is forever imprinted in my mind. Of course, it is also here for you to read.