My original plan was to go hiking through the refuge this morning, but when my alarm went off at 730 am I decided that I had two months left to hike, and decided to sleep in. Typical!
So I decided to explore the town of Suffolk instead. Anything to mingle with some living, breathing humans. I'm absolutely loving what I'm doing here, but my brain needs a bit of a break. So I went into town (I'm almost out of toothpaste), and I stopped at the farmer's market, where I saw a statue dedicated to Mr. Peanut.
I'm not kidding. I'll post a photo at some point.
There was something oddly comforting about seeing that two-legged peanut perched on a pedestal with his top hat in hand. My mom has a tattoo of this little guy on her ankle. She got it a few years back, after my Grandpa Bob passed away. He had the same peanut on his forearm, so seeing the statue made me think of him.
He was the first person to take me fishing, and I remember that day as clearly as if it were yesterday- the little urchins my brother sat on, the taste of the crackers we snacked on, and the way my brother and I were more interested in making a ruckus over learning to fish. The trip back is what stands out the clearest to me, I was wedged in the middle seat of my Grandpa's white Chevy, my knees bumping the gear shift as I peered over the top of the dashboard. I must have been nine years old, we still have that truck. This is the same man that passed on the most amazing biscuit and gravy recipe. I mentioned it before, and I feasted on the same stuff this morning.
After I poked around the farmer's market, I retreated to Starbucks to get my fill of my newest favourite: iced green tea. I'm so bohemian, I can't even stand it.
While I was there I poked around the internet and gave my mom a call. She was at a Tae Kwon Do tournament at which my younger two siblings were competing. Hearing about what was going on back home was exactly what I needed. Recently, each time I call home I have so much to talk about I kind of just barrel through the conversation, but I learned that my sister was competing on her weapons and sparring, and my baby brother was competing on his form and sparring. They're 13 and 11, respectively. I called later and found out that my sister got third place in sparring, and my brother had ranked fourth on his form. They've been attending TKD for about a year and a half, and it is the coolest thing.
I also called one of my dearest friends, Imani. This conversation was also exactly what I needed- I'm so used to having her, and all of my friends at Vassar, within and arm's reach that it's been a little lonely at the swamp by comparison.
I also settled down and wrote a stack of letters at a different coffee shop a few hours later on my way back to the refuge. This is a locally owned place, and I had to refuel my green tea tank. My brother's 18th birthday is coming up, so after buying a card, I sat down to write him a letter. I can't believe he's as old as he is, it seems like it wasn't that long ago that we were making mudpies during my dad's softball practices and trading Pokemon as we hunched over our Gameboy colors. His was that clear grey, mine was purple.
Among the stack (not exaggerating) of letters were several letters going out to National Parks and Refuges all over the country- I'm boasting, I love the fact that I know people from/ working in so many different places. I've been writing up a storm (nothing new) and if anyone would like to gain a penpal for the summer, my address is:
Elizabeth Ruiz
3100 Desert Road
Suffolk, Va, 23434
Of course, we all know I love writing, but that doesn't mean I'm not interested in what else is going on in the world.
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