A small adventure.

I was upset. Stressed to the point where my thoughts went round and round in unproductive circles. It was dizzying. The heat has been keeping me from sleeping well the last few days. I told Andrew that I needed a walk, grabbed my phone and stumbled out into the brightness. I don't know why but walking in a more or less straight line nearly always does the same for me thoughts. They inevitably stop looping and become calmer more logical and more linear when I walk; not pace mind you, but walk. I headed south towards campus. It's pleasantly green and the old neighborhoods this side of it are shaded by big maple treas.
I called Mom and Sarah and told them about the troubles of the day. The talking too inevitably cleared my head.
The heat was enough to have chased most sensible people inside. When I reached Oak Creek, I scrambled down the bank and put my feet in the water. Oak creek is mostly ankle deep at this time of year, but it has carved itself deep barks during spring and winter floods. It was quiet and shady. There were water striders and I spotted a crawdad. After sitting on a gravel bar with my feet in the water for a while, enough of the peacefulness of the place had seeped into my soul for me to think about going back home.
I decided that I would sit down in the creek so that I would be nice and cool for my walk home. Sitting in the creek was so nice and calming that I stayed there for some minutes watching the water striders and smelling the smells of cool water, decaying plants and growing things.
I would have stayed there longer but the damn crawdad bit me! That got me up quick. He didn't really get a hold so it didn't hurt, but boy was I surprised. Every crawdad that I've ever met has made a point of staying away from people. By the time I got home, my clothes were nearly dry, but the coldness from the creek was still with me and I didn't mind the heat so much. Before too long, I fell asleep on the living room floor. The cats kept me company.