Heading North

“Parting is such sweet sorrow”.  These words from William Shakespeare, immortalized in the play Romeo and Juliet, come to mind as we prepare to depart Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge leaving behind people we have met and become friends with. Sweet in the sense that we have forged new relationships with a few and already have plans to see them again down the road, some sooner than others but we will meet again for sure and possibly work together again.  Sad in that, like all other chapters in life, this one is coming to a fast end.

[caption id="attachment_228" align="alignright" width="300"] Packing up[/caption]

 

As I reflect on our 14 weeks here, my thoughts turn back to the expectations and apprehensions I felt as we embarked on our first RV Volunteer assignment. My only fear of being in this wild place was an encounter with a scorpion.  I never saw one, maybe we were here the wrong time of year.  Fortunately, unlike my husband I have no fear of snakes.  I did see several this winter and was not concerned but more curious and a little disappointed that they moved away so quickly that I didn’t get a long look at them.  The encounter with the Rattlesnake was, well, ‘rattling’. It was my first encounter with a snake that could harm me. He was quite docile, having recently emerged from hibernation but scary none the less.  Two things happened after that. I became quite vigilant when walking around knowing they were lurking about and much to my surprise don’t feel the need to rattle at humans, giving them stealth. Not the two that were encountered around the RV’s anyway. The other result was the sudden influx of field mice into the underbelly of our camper. They got inside the camper living space by way of the louvers in the stairs going to the bedroom.  The cats caught the first one. We caught 6 more, in short order, with traps and can only imagine how many ate the Decon that we provided for their dining pleasure. A few hours from departure I am happy to announce, that Champ did not succumb to sudden heart failure, when our reptile friends came out of hibernation, as he predicted he might and the mice are under control.

The work we did for Balcones was a far reach from the job descriptions we applied for but was very rewarding.  My cousin recalled an adage her grandmother used to repeat often “Bloom where you are. “ That fit so perfectly.  The cardinal rule of RV Volunteering is to be flexible to the needs of your host.  "Other duties as assigned" a phrase I uttered frequently in my professional career, was the phrase of the season.  In our case, especially mine, because of our sudden job description evolution, I was privileged to get involved in the refuge mission in ways I never imagined I would be able to. This has been such a rewarding experience for this nature loving corporate burn out. Instead of working in the Visitors Center every day, I got out, got dirty and sweaty, learned a lot and got a great tan!  I still got to do 1 day a week in the Visitors Center which I also loved.  Champ could satisfy his love of ‘piddling’ as he calls it doing various handyman type jobs for the refuge as well as mowing. Our once a week duty of cleaning the trail head public areas, a morning spent working together each Monday was something to look forward to each week.

[caption id="attachment_230" align="alignright" width="300"] Texas Bluebonnet[/caption]

It has been a treat to watch the Texas wildflowers awaken. The best part for me is that most of them are not familiar to me, so it is exciting not knowing what is going to bloom next and what it will look and smell like.  I marvel at the astonishing array of butterflies here. Being from a part of the country that is ag intensive and saturated in pesticides, butterflies and other pollinators are becoming rarer each year. I have also discovered the pleasure of birding ( something that I'm sure will make my mother smile) and plan to continue with what I have learned from our friend John, and hopefully find a new bird mentor who can continue to teach me when I return to Iowa.

In less than two weeks we will be at Saylorville Lake experiencing our favorite campground and part time summer home the past 15 years, in a very different way. There will be new volunteers to meet and become friends with. A new job to do and new rangers to work for. The web that is the Full Time Rv’ers network will grow a bit more and we’ll be at home with our family and friends.  Not in our brick and mortar home but our RV home in Volunteer Village. For the cats’ sake, I wish sometimes I could do a Samantha Stevens trick and wiggle my nose to transport us the 1200 miles home. The road trip is a pleasure for Champ and me.  The cats, well let’s just say, they will be glad when it is over.

Several family members asked me over the winter if I missed anything since selling the house. Or story as yet, reads much like the blogs I read of those who have gone before us.  The angst of selling all our possessions and foundation, morphed quickly into a feeling of liberation and we haven’t looked back.

[caption id="attachment_229" align="alignnone" width="300"] Farewell Volunteer Lunch[/caption]

We’ll pull out of the refuge and head for the Interstate in less than 24 hours and take with us some great memories, new people in our hearts, and maybe a stowaway field mouse.

Till next time…

Enjoy pictures of some of the wildlife I photographed while here. It has been a great experience.

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