For my visit today, I purposely wanted to go right around dusk. My biology teacher had recommended going around nightfall earlier this year specifically remote chance that I might see some deer. I am sorry to say that I did not see any tonight. This might be because my field is in a somewhat populated area with a fair amount of foot traffic in normal conditions. The deer may also have been in a different area of the land where my field is located, so I might have missed them completely. During my visit, I noticed several distinct changes that took place in just a week's time. The water in the creek was flowing much more rapidly. The water level was noticeably higher, and the gurgling in the stream was definitely softer than it had been earlier. The weather was much cooler than what I was used to in past visits. I didn't notice any sounds; it was simply quiet and still. In many ways, I can't verbalize what it felt like tonight--it was almost peaceful in spite of it being colder and darker. The ground was a little bit wet because of the rain we received earlier today, yet it didn't bother me too much during my visit because the rain had stopped. I did, however, see some beautiful Christmas lights across the street from where I was standing in the woods. They really helped to set the tone of extreme peace.
To say the least, this project as a whole was so much more fulfilling than I had originally expected it to be. It exceeded my expectations in so many ways. One of the only regrets I have, however, as I have mentioned before, is that there wasn't any snow on the ground during any of the times I made my visits. God simply blessed us with an amazingly mild fall season without the normally cooler fall temperatures, which was extremely refreshing. However, in this season of Advent that began just today, it would be neat to have some snow on the ground, especially as we begin to prepare our hearts toward Christmas and ultimately Jesus Christ--the true Reason for the Season.
Here is a final portrait from my field:
