Sally, age 79, and granddaughter Tessa, age 12

Intergenerational Description of Joint Project:

Grandaughter Tessa liked to write poetry is concerned about the environment and loves the outdoors. Grandmother Sally mentioned the Rachel Carson intergenerational poetry contest We agreed to form a team and write a poem about a shared outdoor experience. Tessa describes her grandmother and Sally describes her grandaughter along a Utah riverbed

Celebration of Rachel Carson's Sense of Wonder:

In real life we are actively involved in nature- gardening, hiking, ski-ing and rock climbing. Writing this poem together helped us describe these experiences and gave each of us an opportunity to see one another in the magical environment of the Utah Canyons

Poem:

We Walk Together

 

An Australian walking hat sits gently on the white hair of an elderly woman

The long brown hair of a teenager is covered with a colorful hiking bandana

Her wrinkled but soft hands grip a mountain walking stick and even though she walks with a stick she walks with strength

This sprightly youth cavorts across the rocks skipping lightly from boulder to boulder

The yellow orange walls of the canyons surround the older hiker and protect her from the heat of the sun

The young hiker finds the narrow slots in the canyons that capture the shade

The willows surround the banks of the rivers as the elderly women walks on

The teenager dances around a stately cottonwood tree growing in the oasis along the sandy floor of the canyon

They reach out and grab each others' hand., walking together and looking at the sandstone structures

This young and old pair is sharing the wonders of the colorful surrounding that represent millions of years of a changing environment

While walking along the dry river bed they notice the ground is getting softer and suddenly a narrow band of water appears

They spy a sandstone boulder that reminds them it is time for lunch

Sitting beside each other against the rough surface of the boulder the teenager removes the mushy peanut butter and jelly sandwiches

While leaning against the boulder they gaze at the muddy water trickling down from the mouth of this canyon stream

The "grandmother" finds  a  round knobby rock and excitedly weighs it in the palm of her hands .She tells her granddaughter a bit about the history of the "geode"

The "granddaughter" is delighted with the discovery of a  geode in this remote section of the canyon

Arm in arm they walk back to camp reflecting on their exciting adventure inthe wild.