K and I took a different route this morning when we went for our nature walk at Dairy Farm Nature Park. The distance we covered was about 2x further than the distance we walked during our last visit. My little trooper was all gamed to explore this new route and did not even asked me to carry him once throughout our 1 and a half hour walk. Actually I wouldn’t be surprised if we managed to cover at least 3km from our walk

It’s amazing how how nature can be viewed so differently when we take that effort to observe nature in it’s organic form and see the patterns that it creates. Every walk that we take together, K and I will always stop, observe and marvel at beauty of nature. Admire the vast variety of species of different wildflowers/plants on display and watch insects going about their business in their natural environment.

From our walk this time, we were rewarded with a breath-taking view of the Singapore quarry, located at the south-western end of the park. We took in the tranquil sight of the wetland and watched the aerial antics of a fuchsia-coloured dragonfly flying near the cattails.

We spend some time seated under the pavilion next to the quarry and quietly listened to hidden birds, one which sounded like rhythmic drumming of a woodpecker’s bill on a tree.

K even wanted to explore one of the trails away from the walking path. I asked him if he knew what to do if a snake crossed our path, He shook his head. I then told him that it will be better if we explore this other trail the next time when daddy comes with us.

On our way back to the entrance of the park, we were greeted by a group of wild monkeys and caught a glimpse of 2 squirrels scampering across the path in front of us.

K was totally thrilled with the sights he saw this morning and he exclaimed really loudly on our way back, “I like nature!”

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After our last nature walk, K and I have gotten quite hooked to the rush that we experienced after each trip, that I have decided that we will make this a weekly habit. This time round, we ventured slightly a little further; the Dairy Farm Nature Park, located about 2 km away from our home.

Butterflies of various colours greeted us as we started our walk. We craned our necks, looked left and right as we heard numerous birds chirping, in the hope that we will spot some uncommon birds but alas, did not see any.

The park was relatively quiet on a Monday morning, except for a couple of nature photographers and families that we met along the way. We spotted many wild flowers, unfortunately, with my lack of knowledge of flower species, I could not really tell K what they were. Fortunately for me, K did not show tremendous interest in the plants and much preferred looking out for insects and other creepy crawlies. Anyhow, looks like I have a bit of homework to do to get myself up to speed on my knowledge about things in nature.

K spotted his first spiderweb in the ‘wild’, his first stream that morning and plenty more wild flowers along the way. The view of the lush greenery, fresh air and peaceful surroundings made up for the lack of birds. Most definitely we will be back to explore a new route, and will be armed with our magnifying lens the next time

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Setting :

• bright and sunny morning at 9 a.m.
• a small reservoir in our neighbour-hood park

Sounds :

• Birds chirping
• Crickets and other critters
• Cascading water

Discoveries :

• A baby brown lipped snail (its shell was only about 1 cm length)
• Wild fungi
• Bumblebee
• Butterflies
• Lots of large black ants, about 2cm in length (Crematogaster sp)
• Wildflowers
• A black crowned night heron (K’s description; ‘funny bird with long legs.’)

Result :

• An extremely observant and participative little one; busy looking under rocks, anticipating what he could discover under it.
• Squealing with delight when he saw how the mimosa plant’s leaves reacted when he touched it
• A happy and energetic tot who was so willing to pose for photos
• No mention of TV or any present super-hero obsession throughout the 1 and a half hour walk

My initial worries were naught. I was worried that there will be little to see in the neighbour-hood park behind our house, and he might get bored and restless. But our nature experience proved how wrong I was.

“This is all play to the children, but the mother is doing invaluable work; she is training their powers of observation and expression, increasing their vocabulary and their range of ideas by giving them the name and the uses of an object at the right moment,–when they ask, ‘What is it?’ and ‘What is it for?” – Charlotte Mason

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