Today had been unlike my past experiences at my sit-spot. The sun was fully out, the weather was gorgeous with temperatures right in the 70s. Because the sun hadn’t been out before I had never noticed how at my sit-spot you can see the water reflecting off of a tree that stands in front of me. I am unsure of what kind of tree it is, but the tree has fern like leaves that broadcast the sun bouncing off the flowing stream. The sun hitting the water and reflecting upon the leaves had to be one of the most beautiful soothing sights. I also decided to bring a cushion for me to sit on which made being in my spot much more comfortable than I had been in pervious times.

Another main difference in my spot today was that the minnows I have seen every time I have been at my sit- spot that usually are swimming around at the base of the waterfall were gone. I actually didn’t see any fish or creatures inside of the water aside from a few water bugs skating across the smooth surface of the water on top of the waterfall. Today instead of being a guest to the minnows, I got to see and interact with an extremely tiny beetle. This beetle had six legs and was about the size of the opening of a pen cap. It was light brown in color with a black head. It had landed on my journal and I got to hold it. I have included a picture of the small friend I made on my pinky for a size reference.

I am unsure if I noticed the invertebrates surrounding my sit-spot more today because it was one of the questions for todays journal but I had not noticed them in such force the last few times I have been in this spot. I noticed a lack of the larger animals in my space as well though. I didn’t get to see the minnows, squirrel, or birds I had been seeing so much of in pervious experiences. The invertebrate I got the chance to see was a creature I have never laid eyes on before so while I had a lack of larger fauna, it was well worth it. This invertebrate was a small black bug that reminded me a lot of a grub just with a beetle face. Its head was a light brown color with two black sides. On the top of its head were little forceps which I am assuming were on each side of its mouth. Its body was under two inches long and appeared to be almost velvety. Its body was solid black in color with small white hairs that I could just barely see coming from its underside.

When I first saw this creature, it was walking around with tiny legs that I could not count due to the white fur and how fast it was scurrying around. As I observed the creature, it went into this hole that I had assumed was an ant hole upon arrival.

I had seen ants wandering around in my sit-spot which had lead me to this assumption. I wanted to know more about if the creature I did not know was eating the ants or if it simply had a similar home structure. I also wondered if it is a form of beetle larvae that I am unaware of, then what would it look like in its adult form.

Currently, we are in a drought and this made me wonder greatly about the impact of water in my sit spot. I am close to the creek and have not noticed a significant drop in the water level or a fall in the power of the waterfall which makes me think that since the drought has been occurring for a good amount of time that maybe I have only been observing the creek at its lower level. I also thought about how much of a life source the creek might be for those growing around and in it. The grass around the creek seems to still be vibrant and flourishing as I noticed with the foliage I am watching.

The grasses I can see on a hill away from both the creek and Oyster Pond made me wonder if this vibrancy I see is only because of my proximity to the creek while other areas are seeing more direct impact from the drought.

Being at my sit spot today was quite a different time than I have had preciously. My focus was not as good as it has been my last times here and I think that is because of how much I needed the time away from everything the last time I was here. Now, I have a lot of assignments and tasks to get done so my mind is loud. Being unable to focus as I had before pulled me to look around a lot more. While I don’t think this is necessarily a bad thing, it was different for me. I got to see a lot more small creatures because I was constantly being drawn to movement and the slight noises they made. However I enjoyed my time in my spot as I always do even if it wasn’t the exact experience I am used to having.

These are images of the tree I have been following! It is now holding on to very brown leaves most of which have been munched on.

This is the waterfall I am also following. It has now collected much more leaf litter than it has had in the past few times I have been at this spot.