Long Walks and Decompression

Another Day, Another Stroll Through the Gardens

We've been doing walks at the Botanic Gardens here in Los Angeles 3 times a week since the lockdown began. Today, I decided to bring along my Canon EOS R with its 35mm native lens to see if I could do a bit better than what I have been with my aging cellphone camera.

I didn't catch what this cluster of plants is called, but it really stood out to me. I find it strange how we have such a natural attraction to plant-life. Why is it so beautiful to us? What benefit to evolution was it for us to find so much beauty in nature? How does it benefit the plant?

Maybe the real problem is why I even ask the question! It is there for us to admire; so why ask why?

Toward the entrance to the gardens there is a small pond with a waterfall and some rock features. We like to stop there on the way in to have a quick look at the fish. They always immediately swim up to the edge, presumably expecting food.

Of course there is a sign, pleading with visitors not to feed the fish! "They get plenty of food!" the sign reads.

It was a particularly quiet day today. Monday seems to be the best day to go, since there aren't as many other people to dodge. When I say dodge, I really mean it! We are doing our due diligence to social distance since my wife is ready to pop this baby out at any moment, and we don't want to risk her getting the Covid-19!

The above switchback leads to some nice trails with some welcome shade! Doing this walk has become something of a walking meditation for us. Well, especially for me. It turns out that Amanda's sister is always getting off work right when we arrive at the gardens, so she always calls and chats with her for most of the walk. I generally wander off ahead a bit and get a bit lost in the experience.

You can't see it, but just beyond those gates is a mini farm house. There are properties just outside of the botanical gardens which must be worth millions of dollars each. Not because they are amazing houses or anything, but because they are backed up to a garden and on lots of land in the middle of Los Angeles County. That is like gold around here! I like to look at these places and imagine myself being able to afford living there. Maybe one day, if I actually put some effort in.

I've really come to appreciate these long walks in the Botanic Garden. Because we've spent so much time on lock-down, the little bit of time outdoors in nature has really made us appreciate what we've been missing out on. In a way, this is definitely a silver lining on the whole thing.

I've been thinking that I'd like to drive out a bit further and see if we can find any wooded areas where there aren't many people around. Then we could do some camping, or nice hikes in peace! This is something that I really miss about living out east. The woods were never very far away. Here in Southern California, a forest is a luxury!