Kids Need Nature

If parents have

disposable family income,

they take their kids,

to amusement parks,

buy them anything,

money can get.

But consumption is

not what kids need.

In fact, I’ve read it—

kids become spoiled

when we mistake presents

as substitute of

the presence

of trusted guardians.

I agree fully.

Kids need attention,

and stories of the earth,

to explore nature,

and to learn,

names of plant or birds,

the sound of a crickets

why does the sun,

set late in summer?

How did the full moons,

get their names?

What is:

fossil and foraging?

tumbleweeds and leaf-peeping?

migration, adaptation,

resilience, food chain,

petrichor, komorebi,

chaparral, wabi-sabi.

They can feel,

giddy with happiness,

confidence and fulfillment,

if we take them,

for simple nature walks,

under the sycamore and oaks.