Day 5&6: Walden Pond,Concord, and the wonderful vegan bbq

I cried yesterday. Call me cheesy if you will but I was overwhelmed by the magnitude and beauty of nature. We were in, of all places, a cemetery at the time. First , though, I did promise to tell you about our encounter with the lovely couch surfing family.

We arrived at Jenna and Rob's beautiful picturesque house tucked serenely into the woods late Saturday night. Briefly, we met their four sweet children before they were scuttled off to bed. Then Jenna and Rob sat down with us and we talked for hours. We showed them some pictures from the wedding. They talked about their trips. We talked about ours. ( I have been talking to so many new people lately that I haven't been able to be shy!) It was a nice chat.

Yesterday morning was great too. We awoke to a strange sound(...in our world): literally the pitter-patter of tiny feet and tiny whispers. Rob made a breakfast that we all sat at the table and ate together. ( It may sound common place but in the couch surfing world it isn't.) After breakfast Tony and I were dragged off to watch the children ride bikes, see birds nests, play dolls, and play T-ball. We were a little bit sad when it was time for us to make our way to Walden pond. They are a special family and I think Tony and I were kind of star struck in the way that a younger sibling can be towards an older sibling. Their family gave us an example of the kind of family that we would like to build and the type of life style that we would like to embrace. The fact that Rob and Jenna have made it work for them gave us hope that we could have the type life together that we want.

Walden pond was just as lovely as one would expect times three. Despite the horrendous number of both tourists and locals we still managed to enjoy the small hike to where Thoreau built his tiny cabin overlooking the water. There is no cabin left now but a monument of sorts where the cabin once was.

We toured the replica at the entrance of the park. I suppose I was a bit disappointed. I wanted Thoreau's Walden: quiet and soberingly beautiful. It was beautiful. Very Very Beautiful. It wasn't quiet though. That is until I walked a little bit, sat down on a log and watched the pond. I imagined him sitting there: listening, smelling, hearing.We hiked around the pond and stuck our feet in the warm water. After enjoying nature for a little while we hopped back in the car to visit Thoreau's grave.

We have been to no less than four cemeteries in the last week. I used to get a funny feeling in the pit of my belly whenever I would see a grave. The last place in the world that I ever wanted to be was a cemetery. I think at some point, though, we all realize that death is a part of life.

Sleepy Hollow Cemetery is the final resting place of several famous authors. There is actually a section entitled Authors ridge. Emerson, Thoreau and Louisa May Alcott are buried there. One has to park at the foot of the ridge and walk up a steep incline in order to get to the grave sites. Thoreau was first, then Alcott, then Emerson. It wasn't until we were walking back from Emerson's grave that the back drop of foliage caught my eye. It was as if I were in a trance.(I wasn't!) I walked past a children's author, the last grave in the back, and to the edge of a cliff. What I saw there I have no words to describe. It was heartbreakingly beautiful. It was lush, tall, skinny trees with slow moving water below and blue sky above. What a wonderful place to be lain.

We also went to minute man national park. Emerson's family home was right there. We learned a little bit about "The shot heard 'round the world" and Emerson but the temperature was so perfect outside that we didn't absorb much. Massachusetts in the late spring is so green!

Last night we met up with our new host ,Erin, and her couch surfing friend and we ate at a vegan pizzeria. It was so yummy and we all sat chit- chatting for a long time.

Today was a nice relaxing day. The vegan barbeque was so much fun. There were just five of us sitting around with kabobs full of veggies and fruit and Mike's lemon-aid to keep us cool. Because the grill was small, we ended up each getting one thing at a time. Tony said it was like a tasters menu. I was happy because we all got to enjoy each others company for a while longer then we would have. When I stopped to think about it I realized that none of us would have ever met if not for the internet!

Tomorrow is going to be a busy day. We are going to go running around Boston. Then Wednesday is Gloucester and Salem. Hooray for whales and puritans!