I messed up my alphabet! Tomorrow I will post my “F is for…”

 

I always loved nature. I grew up in the suburbs of Washington DC but in a very secluded wooded area. The neighborhood, which also housed a Frank Lloyd Wright creation, was protected so no one could cut down trees or expand “sideways” on their properties. To this day it remains quiet and natural.

I was an only child and there were few other children my age in the vicinity so my parents let me play outside most of the time, running around, playing in the trees, chasing bugs, birds and other wild life. I thoroughly enjoyed my time outside.

Even though I am a nature lover I’ve never had green thumbs. Those belonged to my mother. She loved gardening. I helped her a little then eventually got side-tracked by the butterflies and worms! I loved watching the worms make their way through the soil, chomping away at anything in their way. I explored the back yard and found the moth cocoons and butterfly chrysalis and watched them transform.

 

But nature was not just abundant outside the home. We kept plants in almost every room of the house. My favorite was an aloe vera plant that probably got a little too much use. I was a curious and clumsy kid. Whenever I fell down and scraped my knees, or cut myself on a tree branch my mother cut a portion of the leaf and rubbed the gel over the wound. That was probably one of my favorite things ever! It was just so neat how a little leaf could produce that cool, soothing gel.

 

Now, so many years later, I still keep an aloe vera plant in my room. It does not get as much use because I am too terrified of my autoimmunity (I run the risk of infection every time I cut myself) but it’s a  nice reminder of my childhood and my love of the outdoors.

 

Hi, my name is Monica and I have RA.

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