We went on our first Nature Walk today. The kids look forward to this the most of all the fun things we do. It is a way for them to get outside and explore the natural world around them. Because we are in Abilene, today, where nature has been turned into pavement, we decided to take a walk to the Episcopal Church. When you see the pictures of this magnificent church, you will see why it holds such fascination for the children. When we sit in Glenn's back yard, you can see the church tower lit at night. It is truly beautiful. It looks very much like a castle from the Middle Ages. The kids had fun pretending there were knights just behind the doors. I think we even glimpsed one. ;)
We also saw the effects of the devastating drought impacting Texas residents right now. In fact, according to the LCRA what we are experiencing is the worst it has been since the 1950's. To quote them, "The 10 months from October 2010 through July 2011 have been the driest for that 10-month period in Texas since 1895, when the state began keeping rainfall records. Across most of the Hill Country and the Austin area, rainfall since last October is between 16 and 20 inches below normal. Across the eastern counties of Central Texas and the middle Texas coast, rainfall is running more than 20 inches below normal. Despite the severely dry conditions, this drought is not as bad as the worst in history – the 10-year drought of the 1940-50s. Lakes Buchanan and Travis are in better condition than they were then, even with the low inflows, increased evaporation and water being used. The lakes are about half full " This devastation to our region was evident everywhere we looked on our journey. It is so sad to see beautiful trees dying due to lack of rain and record high temperatures.
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