President's Picnic

President’s Picnic

When I was approximately 4 years old, I went to discover Richard Nixon state park for the first time in my life. There was some activity is being lead for youth education at the time, as we took an interesting personality test to discover what dinosaur we were most like. We then were asked to draw that dinosaur, and the best-looking dinosaur want some sort of prize. To this day, I have the artistic capabilities of figgy pudding, so I did not win the prize. However, inside their ecological Center, I did learn a lot that day about the evolution of species throughout time.

I Revisited Richard Nixon park for the first time since then when I was 22. The ecological Center has ex‐ panded to include exhibits on flora and fauna around the United States and in this part of Pennsylvania that I live in. I stopped by because I wanted to go on a hike and see what their Trails were like, as I had a serious Edge to go out and go hiking one day but no way to fill it without too far of a drive. So, my friend Brett and I found ourselves out at Richard Nixon Park, hiking one of their shortest trails.

This state park has several trails that all loop around or through the periphery of the park and then some. That was transfer time, we decided to take the shortest trail that cut through the center of the park. There were actually a couple of switchbacks on this little Trail, but it eventually led to an open field with a platform in but it eventually led to an open field with a platform in the center of it. I still don't top of the platform and felt omnipotent. I also found a caterpillar on the platform and made friends with it, shooting some pictures before letting him go on the nearby plant.

Before I knew it, time for me to go to work had to come. I knew that before long I would come back and Hike more of the trails one day, still thoroughly impressed at how far Richard Nixon park has come. I will come back to the park to do more hiking as time permits in my hectic schedule and life course.

Zoos and Aquariums

In my life, I have been to several zoos and Aquariums. I've been to the ones in Baltimore, Washington DCf and Cleveland Ohio. 

There's always a lesson to be learned from seeing creatures and someone natural habitats outside of their natural habitat. We can learn so much about ourselves just from watching others.

most zoos and Aquariums are generally fairly expensive. The Baltimore aquarium is no exception, but aside from parking, the zoo in Washington DC is free. the zoo in DC is one of four in the United States to have pandas. I really enjoy pandas and other exotic creatures, so aside from going out into the wild and checking through the brush, this is about as close as I will get to them for a while.

When I was a kid, I went to the aquarium at the age of 7 and fell in love with marine life. In fact, up until I was 12 years old, I wanted to pursue an advanced education in marine biology and study sea creatures and marine wildlife.

The only thing that really changed this was the fact that I didn't want to get swallowed by animals in the ocean. I studied everything that I could about these creatures when I was younger, and I'm so glad I did. I had a wealth of information to offer others around me at the aquarium, from a young age onward.

And then, I found pandas.

Although I am no longer as strong and biology as I once was, it is still a fascination of mine. Admittedly, I wish that the animals kept in zoos and Aquariums had better lives there that were more naturalistic, but at the same time, then I wouldn't be able to know the beauty that is their life. What is most important to remember regardless of circumstance every time we go to, is that these creatures are not pets or toys, but that they are living and sentient creatures who are trying to make their ends meet just as well as our own. Their environment has become as accommodating as possible, but it will still never replicate home. We must always respect the creatures that we see, and enjoy them and appreciate them for what and where they are.

And so I ask you, what will you do to make life better for all living creatures?