It was around seven o'clock when I decided to head out to Las Animas Park that night. I had just…read moreleft the gym at closing hours; the slightly cooler, refreshing air hit my face, when I noticed the tall trees of the park right across the street, less than a football field away from me. Noticing how dark it was, I decided to do a small trek through the trees and just...embrace the natural wonders around me before heading back home.
After crossing the street and walking down the sidewalk for a few minutes, I reached the west entrance to the park. As I continued through the gates ad into the park I took a moment to observe my current surroundings.
Under the veil of darkness I could barely see the outlines of dozens of trees in my path, scattered and spread out like mines on a battlefield. I walked carefully and tried my best to avoid them, for while these "landmines" didn't explode they'd still hurt if you ran into one of them. The tall grass crunched under my sneakers, the small amount of dew on them clinging to the surface. I noticed, off in the short distance, the street lights, which looked almost like the stars
shining in the heavens, spaced out along the parameter of the area. In the faded glow, I could vaguely see the outline of the backstop of one of the two baseball fields.
Deciding to take a small break, I laid myself gently on top of a small barrier of stones. As the area around began to get darker with each passing second, I closed my eyes (which, thinking back, could've been dangerous for me, had someone snuck up on me and attacked me while I was unaware. I now count myself lucky that that wasn't the case.) and listened for any noises or sounds in and around the park. At first, everything was pure silence, which was a surprise given that the park was almost completely surrounded by city streets and buildings, but slowly I began to hear the wind whispering in the branches of the surrounding trees. As I continued to listen, I could also hear the small squeaks of squirrels as they scampered across the leaf-covered grass and climb up into the tall limbs of the trees, the sounds of dogs barking as their owners walked them down the darkened sidewalks, and the occasional frog or cricket announcing their presence through chirps and croaks.
It felt as though I could hear almost every sound and noise in the park. It was wonderful. But, alas, such wonders were only temporary and I knew it. So, after what felt like ten minutes--even though it was more like one, one-and-a-half minutes--I opened my eyes again.
As I picked myself back up and resume my walk, I noticed that a man had been taking a nap underneath one of the trees near me. "He doesn't look like a homeless man," I thought, "must be another visitor to the park." As I looked at him for a few seconds, I began to wonder how he must've felt lying down underneath the tree. He was obviously comfortable, if his small, almost-silent snores were any indication.
"He's lucky." I said to myself. "If that was me, I'd have a hard time sleeping on that ground." That was an absolute fact. I would have trouble lying down on that small patch the man occupied. If I tried to lie down I'm certain the grass would keep me awake. Not because I'm allergic but the sharp points on the grass would be similar to the sharp ends of needles, digging into any unclothed areas (elbows, backs of my legs, etc.). It would've been like trying to sleep on a bed of needles! With that thought I decided it was time to get moving.
As I continued to wander through the park, I suddenly heard a sound right above me. As I looked straight up, I noticed a flock of geese where flying overhead. Watching their movements, their wings flapping against the winds above and the pull of gravity, their outlines, almost impossible to see if I hadn't noticed them, highlighted only by the glow from the stars and the moon's natural light. I watched as they continued to fly off in the distance until the flock disappeared into the great sea of darkness.
It took another five to ten minutes to finally reach the end of the park. As I looked back on Las Animas one more time, I reflected on what I had just experienced. How refreshing it was to just embrace nature for a little while, almost forgetting the large noisy world around me for a few minutes. As I got into my car and prepared to drive back home, I bid farewell to the old park and began my journey back to the craziness that humanity calls "civilization".
Looking back now, the whole experience reminded me of a quote that John Muir once wrote, when describing the mountains of California:
"Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop away from you like the leaves of Autumn."
