When my cousin & I were growing up, my Grandpa devoted a large portion of his Sunday's to spending time with us. Sunday mornings were church, followed by lunch out. We would come home & the grown ups would take an afternoon nap. My cousin & I would try to be very quiet because we knew if we didn't wake him up early, he would take us out for the day. Some days were just walks around the block with the dog. Though the walks were never short because we had our "resting" spots along the way where we would stop and talk. One spot was a brick wall containing a portion of someone's side yard. We would hide small objects we'd found under a bush there near the wall. Things like a rock, a snail shell, a bottle cap, and whatever other small things we found to complete our game. Then, one person would choose an item to hide while the others closed their eyes. As we got older more pieces were added & small things like getting to shuffle the other items around to confuse the other person. We could play this over and over again, and it never got boring. Most days we weren't done around the block, so we would ride our bikes up to the elementary school, or down to the high school, zipping up and down hills, across parking lots, through the deserted halls. We would play hide & seek or just play on the swings and playground equipment. Other times we played "Zombie Tag" or, another favorite, "Avoid the Noid" Our own version of tag based on a series of very annoying Domino's Pizza commercials. One of us was the Noid and we would chase the other's, using crazy silly voices as we chased the others.
We also went to parks quite a bit too. We'd load our bikes into the back of the truck and head out for a full day of bike riding, exploring, and just really enjoying the moment. One of the parks we went to is the same park I take my kids to now. Guajome Park has a lake, and upper pond, 2 playgrounds, and tons of trails. Along the trails, there were postings everywhere stating in big, bold, menacing letters, "WATCH FOR EQUESTRIANS" So, of course, our Grandpa seized this opportunity to warn us of the ever looming equestrians. He would "spot their tracks" and proclaim randomly "Ooh! Did you hear that?! I think it was an equestrian! Stay on the path, don't go off of it, and stay close to me!!" So Justin and I would listen but never quite know if we'd heard anything, always thankful Grandpa could keep us from the (big? small? slinky? sharp toothed? hairy?) equestrians. I honestly don't know how long this all went on for, but I do remember saying one day, when we'd gotten back to the house "What does an equestrian even LOOK like?!" He had that same mischievous look he always got, and I just knew I needed to look it up.
"Grandpa!! It's a person who rides a horse!!!" I couldn't believe I'd been duped, and SO well too! All this time we'd been seeing equestrians out in the open. Spoken to equestrians, admired their horses riding on the trails.
So, when Andrew & Hannah were old enough to start watching for equestrians, I pointed out the signs.. warning them.. And one day, much sooner than my own gullible self, they looked it up themselves and said the same thing I did. Now we get another round of it with Thomas, and this time the older kids get to help me. Yesterday at Guajome, Thomas and I were hot on the trail of an equestrian. Little did he know, he waved hello to not just one, but three of them! My Grandpa used to get such a kick out of hearing Andrew & Hannah talk about their findings with him, and I just know that if he were here now, he'd be loving Thomas' face lighting up as he told him all the evidence of the almost spotted equestrian.
It's funny, I'm always saying that traditions are the small things we love doing, not just big dedicated moments. All these years later, who would have thought "Watch for Equestrians" would be one? I'm pretty certain that some day many, many many (hint hint kids..) moons from now, my kids will be walking down a trail and see a sign, and point it out to their own children. In that moment, they'll be remembering, the same way I do, covering a big smile as they pretend to be concerned for the tracks and the sounds of the dreaded... equestrian!!
