New Thing #233--The Stroll

We went to a picnic today at Oak Knoll Park in Clayton. The picnic started at 4:00, but we didn't arrive until closer till 6:00 because we went to church beforehand.

The picnic was with a group of friends that has been meeting at Oak Knoll Park twice a year- the Sunday before Memorial Day and the Sunday before Labor Day- for almost 40 years. Tony's been going longer than I have, but after we got married we started attending together. There are now three generations at the picnics. It's great to see this group of people, many of whom I see only at these gatherings

When the group started to break up a little after 7:30, Tony and I weren't ready to go yet. After everyone else left, we locked our picnic things in the car and walked through a park after hours.

Although there was a bit of light left in the sky when we started walking, it soon became completely dark. We passed one person going in the opposite direction walking a dog, but didn't see anyone else in the entire park. The only sounds were from the traffic driving down the road that parallels the park.

At the southeast end of the park there's a little pond that was renovated a couple of years ago. The city put a fountain in the middle of it; the fountain was lit at the base and provided a very romantic atmosphere. There is an original stone path that circles the pond and some steps at one end. I sat on the steps, took off my shoes, and stuck my feet in the water; Tony joined me. The water was VERY cold, but felt great on my legs. We sat there for about 10 minutes watching the water and enjoying the quiet atmosphere, then put our shoes on and started walking again.

Unlike the path leading from the parking lot to the pond, the path along the back part of the park was unlit. We walked through this section quickly, noticing all the things that have changed since we started coming there, made it back to the car, (which was the only one in the lot), and drove away.