I first saw the legs, both sets crossed at the ankles. Then I saw two prone figures on the grass – a woman and a young girl. Their bikes and helmets were discarded nearby and both were laying on their backs on the neighbors lush well-tended lawn. Their arms were folded behind their heads forming a sort of pillow and with the similarity in how they were lying I was certain the daughter was imitating the mother. I heard the mother say “oh, oh, look the turtle is going to catch the dog. You don’t think it will eat the dog do you?”  The girl squealed in delighted protest “no silly, turtles don’t eat dogs. But mom look I see a bunny over there.”

I did not have to look to know what they  were seeing, I knew. I have played the same game with both of my children when they were younger. These two were cloud gazing – watching the pictures form in the sky and making up little stories to go with it.

Walking a few more paces the cloud watchers were soon behind me and not able to see me snap the picture (below).  I do sort of see the turtle and the dog, but I see other things in these shapes. Studying the image a second cloud also looks like a turtle, but maybe that is just the power of suggestion. Of course my vantage point was not nearly as good as theirs and by the time I snapped the picture the clouds had begun to reshape into other things.

Let me just say this – cloud watching one ups ‘stopping to smell the roses.’ If you have never taken the time on a beautiful afternoon to just lay in the grass and watch the clouds, then you have something to look forward to!                                 – Kristin