Animal Tracks

One of my favourite things about winter is discovering animal tracks in the snow. Every find is an exciting glimpse into recent history. Just knowing that another animal walked, hopped, or scampered past is an exciting reminder that I share my community with many other animals.

To date I've seen mouse, dog, and bunny tracks, but am hopeful I will find other species in the future. When I am lucky enough to find new tracks I smell them deeply and follow them until they end. This makes me feel like a detective hot on the trail of someone that's trying to elude me. One day I hope to find, smell, and explore the tracks of a masked shrew, red fox, or white-tailed deer. That would be so exciting!

It strikes me that I live very differently from these full time woods creatures. It's hard to imagine a mouse getting cuddles in the "grandpa chair" or a red fox watching movies with his or her parents. Despite our differences I suspect we all want the same "creature comforts" like food, water, a warm, safe place to sleep, and family members to love and be loved by.

Finding animal tracks in the snow reminds me that each of us leaves a unique mark on the world, waiting to be found, examined, and marvelled over.

With love & cuddles,

Lottie

Lesson # 33 Go forth and leave your mark!