I used to walk to Centennial Park at least two times a week, sometimes more depending on how work was going. My job isn’t stressful but sometimes I still need to get out and clear my head. This seems to be especially true in winter, but when the shock of cold air hits me my head clears up pretty quickly and I don’t need to go far. For some reason I’ve also found myself drawn in the opposite direction most of the time, toward the city’s urban heart instead of away from it, instead of to this small oasis of nature in the middle of the urban sprawl.
I felt that way today too. I felt like I needed to stick to concrete, to wander between buildings and construction and the destruction of old neighborhoods. So naturally I headed in the exact opposite direction.
I took some bread from my lunchwith me too. Back when I went to Centennial Park regularly I’d sometimes feed the ducks, but only in winter, because in the summer the ducks don’t want old bread when they’ve got other stuff to feed on. And even in the winter they can be finicky which is fine because I’ve learned that bread is bad for ducks. The ducks weren’t out either. They were sticking to their island in the middle of the lake.
Still I tossed the remains of my lunch into the water and enjoyed the frenzy that followed. The ducks may not need any handouts but I assume pickings are slim under the surface at this time of year. And then I turned back to work, my head a lot clearer from a moment of nature bread in tooth and claw.
I just read through the blurb on Centennial Park and it sounds like a beautiful place. The ‘If Trees Could Sing’ project sounded interesting. Thanks for sharing your little interlude and fishy kindness – I am sure they loved the bread.
Centennial Park is a beautiful place, and it has that life-size replica of the Greek Parthenon and the statue of Athena inside. The fish are just kind of a special bonus.
I’m often drawn in the direction of this blog. Thanks for clearing our heads, Chris.
Thank you for throwing some head-clearing comments my way.
I was in this exact spot 2 days ago. Finally made it to Nashville 🙂 Oh, and I got to glimpse the “Relax, it’s only sex” sign while walking past the Hustler store you told me about 😀
I hope you had a good time while you were here. Well, you walked by the Hustler store so I guess it does without saying that you had a good time.
Hey I just walked by, I swear!