3. Veronica
Bringingfour girls under the age of ten on a camping trip—alone—in the middle of nowhere was either going to be the best idea I’d ever had—or the worst. It was a toss-up at the moment. But, I was hopeful.
It’s a good thing they’re all outdoorsy girls. They don’t mind dust, dirt, and bugs. And God knows Texas has a lot of all of the above. It may be my saving grace here. The heat though, I’m not sure they’re ready for that. So far, they’re being troopers. I’d gotten permission to set up camp areas along the river in a few spots along the trail. Permits and all, signed off by my boss, just in case anyone asked.
For the next week, the girls and I were going to be one with nature. Tents, sleeping bags, bugs, fishing, and learning. I was hopeful that they would love it so much, we could make it a yearly thing. At least for me, Cora, and Kenz.
“Aunt Roni, do we camp here or in the trees?”
I turned to find the girls, their water bottles out, drinking with beads of sweat rolling down their red faces. Welcome to the real Texas heat, also known as Satan’s ass crack, ladies. I brushed my face against the sleeve of my T-shirt to clear the sweat trying to drip into my eyes.
“We’ll set up camp over here.” I pointed to the shaded tree line. “The shade will be greatly appreciated throughout the day. Make sure the ground is free of debris. No one wants to be like the princess and the pea. Let’s get the tents up and everything stashed, then we can take a look about and go over your Junior Ranger Guides. Start day one off on a good note.”
“Can I send Dad a picture so he knows we made it?”
“Of course, you can, Kenz. If you don’t, he and the others may storm the park looking for us.” I laughed as she and my niece Cora, her best friend, ran up onto one of the rocks and grinned at her phone screen. I adored these kids.
And I wasn’t kidding about her dad. Not one little bit.
Jason, who is the best dad he can be for his daughter, is slightly—grossly—overprotective. I think it’s the fear of her getting hurt that makes his overthinking and panic rise. It could also be the military training and the things he’s seen in his life that make him the way he is. The man would move mountains and drain oceans for his kid.
I get it. I’m the same with Cora, and I didn’t birth her. On the other hand, I don’t think my sister, Shirley, is as overprotective as she should be. That’s a whole ‘nother story. There’s a reason I have Cora most of the time. I love the kid to pieces and am so happy I can be that stable person in her life. Her ride or die, for now. When theyre growing up, they don’t always see the good in what you are trying to teach them. They rebel… God knows, I did.
“Ms. Roni, what about the food?” I turned to the kids. “Mama said it has to be put in a tree, so bears don’t kill us in our sleep for it.” Her eyes got wider as she spoke.
Good lord. I was a little speechless for a moment. Who tells their kid that just before they go off into the Texas Hill Country for a camping trip? Still stunned, I shook my head at Gwen’s question. Her mother wasn’t the brightest bulb in the box on the sunniest of days. I should have expected something like this from her.
“There’s no need to tie the food up and hang it in a tree away from the camp. There are no bears here, kiddo. I can assure you, one will not come stomping into camp.”
“What about lions and tigers?”
Blinking, I just stood there, looking at Bree like she had two heads. What were these girls learning in school? Someone was failing them. I shook my head again. Had she really asked about lions and tigers…in Texas? I was feeling the need to have a sit-down chat with their moms. Apparently, they’re not learning what they need in life. Guess it’s time to suggest some after-school programming for them both.
“There are no lions out here. This isn’t Africa!” Cora said, laughing. “You’ll only see them in a zoo. We saw them in Dallas once. They’re sooooooo big! Their teeth are ginormous.”
That’s my girl!
“Tigers are in India and Sibera,” Kenz added, also looking at Bree and Gwen like they had two heads. The fact that she pronounced it as ‘sib-er-a’ had me melting. Adorable. The look on her face though, totally her dad’s fault. I was glad I wasn’t the only one looking worried for them though. So at least some of these kids were learning at school. Though, I felt the lack of knowledge the others had was completely the fault of their moms. Again, those bulbs were less than bright, and apparently they didn’t feel the need to share what they had with their poor kids. Their dads must have shared the smarts they had; they were doing all they could, I guess.
“It’s Si-beer-e-a, kiddo,” I said, making sure to enunciate the word.
Her cheeks pinked with embarrassment. “Oh, okay.”
Cora chimed in, “Tigers are in China too.”
“Yes, they are. Enough freaking out about big animals with big scary teeth. There’s nothing like that out here for you guys to worry about. However, we do need to watch for spiders, scorpions, and snakes. Always look where you’re stepping and sitting. Fire ants can be literally anywhere. No one wants to have their cheeks in a nest. Trust me, it does not feel good. Okay?”
“The three S’s and an A!”
“Yes, the three S’s and an A, indeed,” I agreed, smiling at Cora.
“That spells a-s-s backwards,” she whispered, her cheeks flushing with color.
I snorted out a laugh but didn’t comment. “Before bed, we will search our tents, shake out the sleeping bags. The temps will be cooler at night, but it’s still going to be hot. If you’re outside, I want you in your water shoes. If we are hiking and searching, you need your boots. Got it?” They nodded. “Before you put anything on, make sure there are no critters in it. Scorpions can be on you and you’d not even see them. The bigger ones will be more obvious. Safety first.”
“Yes, ma’am,” they chorused.
I was talking all while pulling the large, family-sized tent out of its bag. The sooner we got this done, the sooner I could give them a full rundown of what we were going to do. What was allowed and what was not. This was a national park, after all. The rules were what would keep us all safe on this trip.
“If at any time on this trip you feel like you need to go home, if this isn’t a fun learning experience, you just tell me, and I’ll make sure your parents come and get you. There would be no hard feelings; honestly, this won’t be all sunshine and rainbows. We are at the mercy of the weather and Mother Nature.”
“I’m so excited to find some bugs. I’m going to find them all!” Kenz said, bouncing around. “Big ones, small ones…I want to find creepy ones.”
Chuckling, I shook my head slightly and continued to set up the tent. Thankfully, the girls were a big help with the set up, so it went quickly. I had it up, their sleeping bags still rolled up and lining the wall. The camp stove that I’d carried with me from where I’d left the Jeep was on the floor of the tent, ready for us when we came back.
The makeshift bathroom, which was nothing more than a small bucket with biodegradable bags in it, a little dirt in the bottom to keep the shape and help absorb things, was set up as well. Was it the nicest thing to deal with? No, but for a remote area like this, it was best. It would be set just outside the back flap later so everyone would be safe.
I didn’t want the girls traipsing through the brush to do their business in a hole in the middle of the night. And there was no way I was driving the back service roads to go up to the main campsites with the toilets. I’ve seen enough of them every day as it was. I was off this week and that meant we were roughing it.
“Okay, girls, grab your books, water bottles, and packs. It’s time to go exploring and find interesting things.”
“Bug time!” Kenz all but danced in place.
This girl and her love of bugs, it was a little disturbing at times.
“Bugs are gross!” Bree said, her face scrunching up.
“Bugs are cool. Come on, don’t be a baby.”
“Okay, girls, enough of that. Let’s go. Make sure you have a water bottle and a map in your bag. This is a learning experience, after all.”
“I have my compass!” Cora shot out in front of me, the gold compass she’d gotten last Christmas laying in her palm.
“Will we see birds?” Gwen looked hopeful.
“Of course. We’ll see a lot of things this week, kiddo. There’s a whole lot of animals and critters out here. Birds of all kinds. Some big, some little.”
“Just no bears,” Bree requested, slipping her bag on her back.
“Yeah, no bears. But there is a chance of a mountain lion sighting, so let’s try and keep our eyes open, shall we?” I slid my bag on, made sure I could get to the knife I carried and my service weapon. This was a camping trip, yet I wanted to be prepared for anything. I had four girls to take care of out here.
“Will we see any salmonlanders?”
I snorted. “Salamanders? Yes. I’m sure we can find some, especially closer to the river itself. They like dark, wet places. Might find some frogs too.”
I grinned over at Kenz. I would never make fun of how these kids pronounced certain words. It was cute. Plus, even I, at the ripe old age of thirty-eight, had trouble saying aluminum. Not to mention, I can’t say things like rhinoceros and hippopotamus. Those are disasters. Funny for all but me. I used them as a party trick. Don’t roll your eyes, it’s fun, especially after a few drinks—and when you manage to slip up and say it right, you think you’ve mastered it, only to say it wrong again in the next breath.
We moved up a small incline, the girls going before me so I could keep a close eye on them. The last thing I wanted was for one of them to stumble and roll back down the incline. The idea of them wandering off in different directions was giving me hives. If I lost a kid out here this week, even for the briefest of minutes, I’d never live it down. I’d have to turn in my badge and accept the failure of it all.
Okay, not really, but still. Can you imagine the ribbing I’d get?
I could hear the birdsong floating across the open space as we made our way up the incline. The park, this time of year, was always full of life. I took the girls to an open space with lots of vegetation, rocks to climb on, and even more birds. I took in the view, scanning the trees for animal life.
“Hey, look up there.” I held up a hand and pointed toward the trees. I watched the girls take in the view. I noticed the moment they saw what I was looking at.
“Is that a woodpecker, Aunt Roni?”
I pulled my binoculars from my bag and handed them to Cora. “Look closer and tell me what you see. Take in all the details you can make out.”
“It has a yellow face.”
“And?”
“It’s black and white too,” Bree said, looking through the binoculars next.
“It’s too small for a woodpecker. It’s chubby and tiny.” Cora giggled.
“Right?” I chuckled. “So, what else could it be? Look at your book.” I dropped my pack as I spoke. The girls huddled together to look at the guide I’d given them before we left.
They were too cute when they were in the zone, their eyebrows pinched in concentration.
“This is it.”
“No, I think it’s this one.”
With my eyes on the ground around us, making sure there were no snakes or scorpions, I sat and watched the girls flip back and forth through the guide.
“Is it a Warber?”
“Golden Wa-war-warberler?”
“That one is a mouthful. Yes, that little one is a Golden Cheeked Warbler. Let me tell you a little about them.” They each plopped down on the ground around me, their journals out. I had to fight back a smile. “That is a very rare sighting.”
“Why?” Kenz and Cora asked in unison.
“They like to forage inside vegetation, so we got very lucky. They’re the only bird species where the entire population comes up and nests in Texas. And they’re on the endangered species list, so we will do what we can to not disturb them.”
“We should do that anytime we are out in nature,” Kenz agreed.
“You are absolutely right, kiddo. Who taught you that?”
“Daddy. He says our footprints should be in the dirt not on the land. Not sure what he says sometimes. He’s a weirdo.”
The bark of laughter I let escape was loud. I covered my mouth as I took that in.
She was right; Jason could be a real weirdo at times. A little nerdy. Studly, sexy as sin, the man was well-rounded—someone I could always count on. Other than my family, that is. Like the night I set my stove on fire. The alarm hadn’t gone off for more than a minute and he was running through my back door. I’d had the fire out by that time, but the fact that he’d run over to help, it was one of his most endearing features.
“Mrs. Albertson told us that birds migrate from cold places to hot places.”
Cora pulled me from my thoughts. I nodded. “They do. Let’s take ducks and geese for example. They travel from different places following the weather.”
“Do land animals migrate too?”
“Sure, some do. Elk, caribou, they migrate from place to place. Penguins do too.”
“Whales do that. We watched a video on it in Mrs. Albertson’s class.”
“Awesome. I love whales.”
“Ms. Roni, I need to pee.”
“Can you wait until we get back or are you pushed?”
“No, not pushed, I will hold it.”
“Okay then. What do you say we go back to camp and let Bree go to the potty, then we will get set up for dinner? It’s too dry for a big bonfire, but we have the grill to cook on.”
“Can we make hotdogs?”
“That’s on the menu today along with baked beans.”
“Eww, beans make you fart.” Gwen crossed an arm over her stomach.
“I—Jesus, let’s get a move on, y’all.” Laughing to myself, I tried to figure out what to say to that. I shook my head, put my pack on, and moved the girls back up the makeshift trail. I wasn’t touching it. That’s what I figured would be best. These kids, I swear.
The Colorado River ran through the northern end of the park, adding a nice view and plenty of opportunities for fishing. Each of the girls had gone and gotten their very own fishing permits, making them feel like they were big girls. And they were.
This trip was going to be amazing.