Hidden Magic • Ditch Creek

Posted on September 21 2016

Folks who yearn to explore and wander plan trips in their minds as they go about their day, occasionally checking in on flight prices to beautiful faraway places. But sometimes you find stunningly beautiful places in your own backyard. Or in this case, your parents' yard.

Those who grew up in various suburbs of this part of Illinois always know of a local creek. It dries up a lot, you find dead things in there sometimes, but we, for some, spent the long summer afternoons of our childhoods splashing through the shallows, minnows flitting about our ankles. Sun dappled flecks of gold light hit the mossy rocks, dragonflies zipping past our ears. Childhood bliss.

When Blademaiden's parents followed the kids from the Northwest Suburbs to the Fox River Valley (we're the ones with the grandkids, after all), they took up residence in a house with a big back yard and a little creek that runs along the back, up against some office buildings which you can barely see because of the big, beautiful trees. These creeks have lost only a sliver of their luster now that we're technically grownups.