Monday, July 01, 2013

Cooling Off For a Few Hours

I took this picture of a field of poppies growing across from our house.

 

A young country neighbor who is also a Christian wanted to know if I knew somewhere she could swim that was private. I knew of a clean, clear part of the Willamette River, (pronounced Wil-LAM-it), and we took a picnic lunch. While we were dipping in the river we noticed that, unlike most rivers we were acquainted with, the current in this river did not flow out to the west, toward the sea, but was going north.

 

This is a closer view of those poppies, which we passed on our way to the river.

We spent several hours cooling off in this river. Later, we enjoyed walking on the pebbled beach and picking up colored stones in aqua, red and yellow.

This river is close by my home and there is rarely anyone there when I go. My friend was happy she had the privacy, and aside from seeing a couple of brave people jumping into the water from the top of that sandy cliff opposite us, we were indisturbed.

We set up the quilt and picnic over there by the little cove. I completely forgot to get pictures of the picnic setting....

....but here is one of the sandwiches, made with garden-fresh tomatoes and cucumbers.
I hope no one is getting tired of tea pictures, because I always bring some kind if tea. This time, it was mixed berry herbal, which would also be great iced, so maybe we will do that next time.
We went back to our respective homes feeling cooler and a little more energetic for unfinished tasks. Mine seem to be hanging out laundry, making meals, and gardening. It is vital to take time out for recreation.
I found out after arriving home, that there are a few other rivers run towards the north, one of them being the Nile River. If you are homeschooling, this might be a a subject of interest. I found it interesting to see the current in the Willamette going the opposite way from what I expected!
 
 

 

 

4 comments:

magnoliasntea said...

The photo of the poppy field is just beautiful. I'm so glad you had a day of relaxing and enjoying the water with your friend. The water looks wonderful. Several years ago we visited friends in West Virginia, and they took us to an overlook of a river that flows north. Here's the link to my post about it if you'd like to take a peek:
http://foothillsofthegreatsmokymountains.blogspot.com/2007/07/west-virginia-ballband-cloth.html

Have a great day!

lynn m said...

Lovely, lazy river....it looks refreshingly clear too....nice sandwhich...pretty poppies and so many! Glad to know you have a place to cool off like that...I have taken to riding my 'new' bike in the evenings - the wind has been blowing and it's cooling...
DO keep sending tea pictures!
Have a blessed day today.

Anonymous said...

Oh the picture of the poppies is just gorgeous!

And no, I'm *never* tired of seeing your tea pictures.

Thanks for the reminder to make time for R&R.

living from glory to glory said...

Hello, So glad you had a day to rest and be refreshed. Those flowers were just so pretty. Have a wonderful and happy 4th of July.
I never get tired when you share of your teas of different flavors or blends or a lovely lunch idea. It always inspires me.
Blessings, Roxy