The boys and I were heading to meet some friends who needed to make a quick stop before they got to us. So we decided to take a little detour by the creek to make use of our time. Of course, that detour was just supposed to be a look at the creek from the car.
That’s never what happens.
“Can we just get out to take a quick peek?”
“Okay, but don’t get your school shoes dirty.”
Before I could blink, they were both down by the banks, happily exploring the rocks.
What at first seemed like a peaceful side-jaunt on the way to meet friends, quickly turned into a comedy of errors. One of the boys was getting close to the mud so I asked him to throw me his shoes and socks. Just as he was wailing the second shoe my way, the other walked right in front of him, taking a muddy shoe to the face. In what felt like a slow-motion picture show, in his shock, he lost his balance, took one more step, and slid right down the side of the bank into the deepest section of the creek, clawing for dear life the whole way. Before I could even get a single word to leave my mouth, he was screaming, with both frustration, and I think a little bit of fear.
I instantly offered a branch to pull him out, which he sternly resisted.
When he reached the top, he was ready for my help. First we used a water bottle and napkins from the glovebox to get the mud splatter off his face. Then we tackled the globs in his hair. While I stepped to the side to knock the big pieces off his shirt, I felt something crunch beneath my feet. I looked down to realize I’d just put all my weight on his glasses, completely crushing them.
Just then, I got the text that our friends were pulling in.
I rounded up all our broken, wet, muddy pieces and got us all in the car. Since our friends were now waiting on us, I thought I’d take a shortcut. It looked like a clear path. The section that is sometimes muddy looked like dry, cracked dirt. But of course, it wasn’t.
It was more like quicksand.
With my senses already heightened, I quickly threw it in 4 wheel drive, rocking and rolling left to right until I got us out of there. We ascended the curb with mud flying every which direction. And a trail of destruction in the rear view.
The moral to the story is two-fold:
1. Taking a side road for a peaceful exploration might not turn out the way you planned, but they usually make a good story later.
2. Shortcuts often lead to quicksand and they’re rarely worth it.
Explore the side roads, but remember it’s okay to take the long way home. to more love,Crystal
