Day Trippin: Down to Southern Delaware

This week I decided to travel down south and visit beautiful fields until sunset, have a bonfire, roast hotdogs and make s’mores. It’s been such a beautiful week that being anywhere other than outside would have been absurd. So I headed to Clayton, Delaware in my beat-up Volvo, chugging along Route 1 and 13. I rolled the windows down the entire ride, stuck my arm out and felt the wind through my fingers. If you’ve never been to Southern Delaware, it’s certainly worth the drive.

I passed many a field and weather-torn houses—all beautiful in their own right. Whenever I drive down to southern Delaware, I always take the time to look around me because it can be hard to find lovely things in Delaware. The fields were rolling and green; the sharp, purple-grey straw weeds lining them made for a picturesque view of the Amish farms. The woods always seem welcoming and they hide mysterious things I wish I knew.

I came to a stoplight and turned my head to the left where I saw a rickety cottage, old and falling apart. It was small and was probably built by hand. It most likely hadn’t been lived in for a long time. The paint was fading and the porch was collapsing, but it stood in the middle of a small field, surrounded by the woods; almost like it had been there forever and will be there forever. It reminded me of the movie Big Fish with the small town in the middle of the woods. Standing— or more like leaning— next to it was a silo, wooden and falling apart like the house. It completed the scene, ya know?
Next I landed at my destination: a lovely field with a pond, trees and fire pit. I was having dinner and dessert with my family but since they were all at work, I decided to take my shoes off and walk around a bit. There was a slight, cool breeze and the grass curled between my toes, making me feel like a child again. I walked over to a patch of bright, yellow daisies growing wild and free. For some reason it reminded me of the Mumford & Sons song “After the Storm,” and I thought of the part about the flowers— “And there will come a time, you’ll see, with no more tears/ And love will not break your heart, but dismiss your fears/ Get over your hill and see what you find there/ With grace in your heart and flowers in your hair”

So, doing what any normal person would do, I picked a flower and put it in my hair. I turned back around and saw that the sun was nearly set and its shine through trees against the flowers made for a beautiful picture snapped with my phone.

I then headed further back towards some apple and pear trees. It made for a nice picture, so of course I took another one. On one of the pear trees laid an abandoned bird’s nest, wilting, with a bee that, I can only assume, was examining the craftsmanship.

Finally, my family arrived home from work and the sun had fallen. It was a little chilly out, which made a perfect night for a campfire. You can’t really beat hotdogs cooked over a fire—the crunchy outside of the dog with ketchup. YUM! And then the s’mores which, of course, are always delicious.

It was so dark outside, if you looked up you could see all the stars, winking and bright. There are so many parks and fields in Delaware that are like this. I encourage all of you to try traveling to one and just to look at the stars. It’s worth the trip.