As children, my sisters and I were often advised to pay attention to where we placed our feet. Kids can be clumsy and a misplaced step causes irreversible harm if you happen to be a toadlet or a slug, and a sneaker is descending upon you. It was a lesson worth heeding, and one I took to heart.

Besides avoiding harming those whose lives transpire largely on the ground, watching one’s step can be a doorway to delight as one discovers “hidden” wonders happening just outside the boundaries of our everyday awareness, such as the dung beetles described in the photo caption at right. 

Take a walk with me and expand your experience of the lifeforms we co-exist with here during the 2024 Upper Delaware BioBlitz at 2 p.m. on Saturday, June  29 at The Highlights Foundation Retreat Center in Boyds Mills, Wayne County, PA.  Bring your smartphone or digital camera to “capture” what we encounter during our Art of Awareness ramble. The walk will end with an optional sharing of our photos and a co-composed poem or individual reflection. Participants will receive a field kit for future adventures, containing a mini notebook plus macro and wide-angle lenses for use with phone cameras (while supplies last).

The BioBlitz is an event where biology experts and volunteers gather to collect, identify and catalogue every living thing on a demarcated property in a 24-hour period. Additional activities will take place that day between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Visit www.upperdelawarebioblitz.com for an updated schedule.