Epilogue - The Next Day
“Okay, kids, we’re on the lookout for raspberries, huckleberries, blueberries, and saskatoons today,” Kit announced to the squad of about twenty little girls gathered around. Pumpkin sat among them as if she was listening to Kit’s speech too.
Bear translated carefully into ASL for the pair of girls who needed it, both of them staring at him like he’d hung the moon.
“Remember to call one of us over before you pick anything so we can make sure it’s safe. As a reminder our names are Kit, Bear, Morgan, Ryder, and Maverick. If you can’t remember them, you can just stick your arm up in the air and ask for help. Does everyone have their baskets?”
Twenty pink plastic baskets lifted into the air.
“All right, let’s go.” He led them into the woods, one little girl hanging on to his arm, Bear’s fan club clinging to him, and the rest following.
One of the two chaperones hung back with me, making sure no one got left behind. She pushed a little girl named Eleanor in an all-terrain wheelchair, who had a camera in her hands, the edges of it padded with thick rubber.
Muffin booped my hand, staring into the trees.
“Pause here.” I tapped Eleanor’s shoulder and pointed up into one of the trees, where a red-tailed hawk was nestled on a branch. “He’s posing and ready for you.”
Eleanor let out a delighted squeak and snapped some photos. “I love red-tailed hawks.”
“I’m impressed you knew what species he was.”
She looked up at me, eyes bright. “I know all the birds out here.”
“How about that one?” I pointed to a tiny songbird with yellow plumage down its chest and belly.
“Western meadowlark,” she said as she snapped another picture. “That’s our state bird.”
“You got it. We host photography camps if that would be more your speed than berry picking,” I offered.
“I’d love to bring the girls back for something like that,” the chaperone told me.
Every so often we’d hear a squeal of delight as a new patch of berries was discovered and one of my pack would double-check them before they filled their baskets.
I already had a simple cake baked back at the lodge they could eat with their berries when we were done.
This was about all the motherhood I could handle. I loved having the opportunity to show kids how much they could enjoy the world around them. Being able to find food in the woods had always felt empowering to me, and I wanted them to feel that too.
I listened with half an ear as my pack diligently explained how important it was to know for sure what they were picking, and giving little lessons on different plants the girls asked about. I could name everything that grew around here now, partially out of necessity so I could keep our guests safe, but also for my own knowledge. Knowing what surrounded me, the plants, animals, and potential risks, helped me feel safer. I had Muffin now, too, who was basically glued to me at all times, and though she was a huge comfort, I didn’t want to rely on her for everything.
Summer was healing in itself. Having children and omegas on the property shifted the energy. It wasn’t the same boys’ club as when I had arrived. My presence was able to give those who wanted to come here an indicator of their safety. It was easy to tell if omegas weren’t happy, so when you encountered one who was, it was a pretty good measure that you were somewhere safe.
I pulled in a deep breath of the lush greenery, letting Muffin slide beneath my hand for attention. She nudged the camera hanging from my hip, as if reminding me I hadn’t been fulfilling my duty. I wandered through the groups, taking photos. Some photos would go on our website, but most would simply go to the families as a memento.
Pumpkin pranced over for some attention that I readily gave. “Having fun, sweet girl?”
She licked my hand and bolted back into the throng of children, checking in with every group to get some much-needed ear scratches.
“You’ve built quite the experience out here,” the chaperone told me.
“Thank you. We’re proud of it.”
“You should be.”
I grinned, joy from my whole pack gliding through the bond. “And it’s only going to get better.”