08.01.2006

The month of August has always been one of my favorite months, probably because my birthday occurs on the 7th. When I turned six years old, it was a special birthday, because my present that year was the baby brother who had been born 3 days before my birthday. He was dark, tiny, and cute. Several years later, I had a sister born 2 days after my birthday. She too was a special birthday present.

Yet, on the other hand, August has also been one of my least favorite months, due to the severity of the heat here in Texas. Sometimes the summer days just seemed to last forever. It was wonderful as a kid to wander the banks of Nolan Creek and jump in there just to get wet. I didn't know back then how polluted the water was, nor how pollution could "make you sick." Now as a grown-up, it's as if I had grown up swimming in the Ganges River, with an immune system that kicks in when any illness tries to show up.

That first summer of my existence was a special one for my parents. They had to go out and buy their first water cooler right after I was born. I cried and cried, and broke out into heat rash, so they did what any good parents would do. They got the house cooled down, just so I wouldn't cry so much.

Yet, I cried and cried some more, because apparently I was also "allergic to synthetics." That meant all natural cotton diapers for me! No new-fangled throw-away diapers back then, ... no sirree! It was cloth and wash 'em by hand, and hang 'em up to dry, and fold 'em for their next use.

As the years went by and I started wandering down to the creek. August was a month of discovery. I found bugs and plants galore that all needed identifying. Every little facet of nature caught my eye and wanted to be named. I started going to the library and doing research as soon as I could read, and learned about dragonflies, dung beetles, ant lions, water cress, water moccasins, scorpions, red ants, horned toads, bull nettles, oak versus pecan trees, and on and on. There was never a moment to be lost in this world of wonder!

My family grew by leaps and bounds as the next 7 siblings came into being. Most of the time my parents didn't know where I was - because I was down at the creek discovering new wonders. I learned to fish by sticking my hands under the banks of the creek and slowly bringing them together to catch a catfish. I learned to build a lean-to with branches and sticks and twigs, thatching them with pampas grasses and blades of johnson grass. Rarely did I come home without another major scratch or cut, and entire major body areas covered with chiggers.

My parents told me to stay out of the creek, so I'd make sure they didn't know I'd been in the water. Most of the time I just went skinny-dipping, which is a marvelous experience as a kid. This kept my clothes dry, and didn't seem so conspicuous when I'd get home. And if I stayed in the sun long enough my hair was always dry before I got home.

I think that becoming a teacher was also a subconscious career move for the sake of the month of August. Being free each summer, I still have sought out new wonders throughout the years. I have travelled far and wide, covering most of Europe, Mexico, and the United States. In each place I find myself asking people "What kind of plant is this?" or "What kind of bird is that?" Unfortunately, many people don't seem to be interested in that sort of thing, so I still end up going to the library to find out what I need to know, or I end up buying reference materials to further my own knowledge of indigenous flora and fauna.