Go on an adventure this summer
Although the first official day of summer is June 20, the date of the summer solstice, the summer season and atmosphere begin as soon as school lets out.
Many public events have been cancelled or curtailed due to the state restrictions because of the covid-19 pandemic, but summer has not been canceled.
For those of us in northeast Benton County, we are easily within an hour of many different places to enjoy the outdoors including, but not limited to Beaver Lake, White River, the Elk River, Eureka Springs, Roaring River, Hobbs State Park, the Pea Ridge National Military Park and the many trails in the area.
I realize I can hear teenagers saying “lame” or “boring” to these suggestions, but, there are still activities for families with young children that are not dependant on others. They can play in the water sprinkler (an oldfashioned alternative to the modern splash pads). They can play ball, hide-and-seek, and even help garden.
I was blessed with a mother who was a teacher who never missed an opportunity to provide an educational opportunity. When educating my first four children, I took them on many field trips that were fun as well as educational.
Within a relatively drive there is the George Washington Carver State Park in Diamond, Mo. (58 miles north), Fort Scott at Fort Scott, Kan. (122 miles west), Fort Gibson, Okla. (108 miles south west) and several museums in Tahlequah, Okla. (88 miles southwest). Har Ber Village outside of Grove, Okla., is just 57 miles northwest and offers an enjoyable experience.
There are wooden fort stockades at Fort Gibson and Fort Scott and watching a few old Westerns may enhance the experience of learning more about our nation’s history and how this area was indeed the beginning of the wild West.
Children are very impressionable. If we adults, as their parents, complain and moan about the deprivations, then they will, too. But, if we reevaluate and readjust and find the opportunities avilable, we could have a very enjoyable time this summer.
And, although it may seem out of style in this fast-paced, electronic age, laying in a hammock or on a quilt in the yard beneath the stars or the clouds is a good opportunity to relax and feed the imagination. Reading a book is a lost art, it sometimes seems, is a valuable experience.