by Tao Oliveto, Carrboro, NC

Every morning, I’m in the woods, I enjoy seeing the imperfection of nature. I know these woods well, yet constantly am seeing new and interesting things - trees growing from under rocks, branches shaped like question marks, stones shaped like a smile - designs of nature, some constant, some ever-changing. It provides a very strong contrast to to what we see in many of the manicured and edged neighborhoods. How wonderful if we could treat our backyards with respect for it’s true “nature” of wabi sabi beauty and give it and ourselves the freedom to create! I was considering this at length when I noticed something strangely interesting while biking through town.

Yesterday, I noticed two rubber balls  - the kinds little kids play with - stuck in the end of a row of bushes. I was curious, but assumed it was simply kids up to mischief and biked on past. Today, I noticed this same bush, balls still in place, obviously trimmed, so I looked more closely. There were two long and bushy branches standing up above the rest. Interested, I slowed down and coasted by (something I couldn’t have done safely in a car!) and looked at the rest of the row, neatly trimmed in a curving shape. Aha! I stopped and laughed and said out loud, “It’s a catepillar!” I turned back to see the ball “eyes” again and the long branches above them - perfect antennae!

I haven’t stop smiling yet today - or thinking about that oddly shaped orange bush in my own yard that looks a little like a dancing bear…

Have fun. See all nature has to offer, not just the straight and narrow.