10-6-2020

During my 15 minutes of concentrated focus I saw countless water bugs bouncing around on the surface of the stream that lies roughly 5 feet north of my sit spot. I also saw a handful of tiny, extremely fast fish whip through the water, swimming so fast that I questioned if I had even seen them at all, until the swam past again. The tall grasses and plants in the flower bed on the other side of the stream rustled in a spot north east of my position. Whatever critter was in the grass I didn’t see, as it didn’t come out or make itself know along the side of the stream, although I think I saw a blur of light brown, so I suspect it was a squirrel. The water bugs continued to play, and I could hear the obnoxious calls of a crow in the trees south of my position. The continuous melody of chirping crickets filled the autumn air, as did the rustling of leaves and bushes as the breeze travelled through and small critters played in the brush. I heard what sounded like squirrels bounce through the fallen leaves to my west and south, but the remained hidden from sight. I swore I heard the low growl south of my position in the trees and brush at the stone wall, but it was gone as quickly as it came, and no creature was visible. I wish I had been able to locate the source of the growl, as I found it to be very interesting and unexpected. The breeze stopped and the air then became still, and slowly gnats and tiny bugs began to descend from the sky, clouding the space around me. Despite the bug repellent I had applied previous to my arrival, some of these insects were still brave enough to bit me anyway. A squirrel bounced into view to my far northwest, and briefly stood staring at me on its hind legs before bouncing away again to forage and play.

I spent ten minutes observing a particular water bug, which rested on the stream’s surface almost right in front of me. It remained in basically the same spot for almost this entire period of time, swimming forward (upstream) just enough to not be swept west by the stream’s slow water flow current. At one point it did float backwards about five inches, but quickly swam forward and regained and maintained its original position. I watched as it lifted its front leg to the front of its body, almost like a thinking person lifting their finger to their chin. I found this to be comical. It then slowly began to make its way upstream (east), one stroke at a time. It continued to move upstream at this pace until it was out of sight from my spot, and even when I moved forward a bit, I could only see it for another moment.

The water at my sit spot is provided by the stream that runs west to east through the garden. The stream provides a home and shelter for the aquatic species that live in this area, such as fish, water bugs, frogs, turtles, and others. It also provides a drinking source for the terrestrial species that live there, such as the squirrels and skunks, and helps to bring moisture and nutrients to the plants that live in it and along its edge. Without this source of water, I think that the garden would probably be a bit less lush, populated, and beautiful, as among all of the ecological benefits it brings to this ecosystem, it also brings beauty to the landscape.

I did notice some changes to the three things I chose to follow up on. For one, the stream appeared to have a bit more algae present than the last time I was there, and its banks had new fallen leaves around it. The west section of the plant and flower bed along side the stream looks like it had been cleared out as well, as I don’t remember that whole area being empty and cut back. The bushes also showed signs of change, as the leaves on their north side turned red, and many of their leaves have fallen to the ground, leaving bare patches on the bushes’ branches. The tiny tree beside them appears to have lost the new leaf growth it was showing on its uppermost branches and may be dying completely. The large oak tree to the west has also changed, as its leaves have begun to turn and are falling to the ground. Many shriveled leaves are present on its branches, as well as leaves with holes and eaten spots in them.

In conclusion, I believe that this was a successful visit to my sit spot. I left my spot at 5:50 p.m., and overall feel like my focus improved since the last time I did a journal entry. I was able to gain attention to smaller details much quicker than last time as well. I enjoyed sitting and observing the nature and life around me and felt very relaxed and in tune with my surroundings. I haven’t spent time in the garden since my last sit spot journal entry because I’ve been too busy with homework, so it was nice to take some time to just connect with and tune into nature. I am looking forward to my next log entry and expect that by then many more of the garden tree’s leaves will be littering the ground.

 

(P.S. I apologize for the low resolution pictures. My phone was acting up, and the sun was starting to go down, and the camera just wouldn’t focus.)