Little Big Changes
Something So Small Can Mean Everything
Facebook reminded me yesterday of an important milestone that took place three years ago on March 28, 2021. That was the day our family hoofed it out to Frog Rock in New Boston and thus started Little Bean and I on a rock quest that has changed our lives.
Still in pandemic mode and looking for nearby, easy hikes, after visiting the obscure, frog shaped boulder, Little Bean asked me if there were other named rocks in the state. Two field guides published later, with two (maybe three) to go, we can assure you all that yes, there are many, many named rocks in New Hampshire.
Here’s what I wrote of that trip at the time:
Back around 1900, when summer tourists came on up to New Hampshire from Boston to escape the city heat, one of the places they'd stay was the Grand Hotel in Mont Vernon. And one of the "attractions" listed on the hotel's promo literature was an excursion out to Frog Rock. Guests at New Boston's hotels and guest house would also like to picnic up by the curious granite boulder shaped (from a certain point of view) like an enormous frog.
Today, that frog rests inside the Hildreth Towne Memorial Forest, a mixed use New England Forestry Foundation strip of land that's now mostly overgrown from the days of ladies in wide skirts eating crackers and cheese in the shade of the frog. An aside - because it's mixed use, we were surprised to discover a strip of logged forest barely twenty feet from the frog.
At any rate, we set off on a glorious spring day and found the "trail" called Frog Rock Road near the Hartwood Apartments along 2nd NH Turnpike. On my GPS the turnpike was listed as Francestown Turnpike which lead to some extra driving before we discovered the trailhead. There's no signs, and parking along the shoulder for, perhaps, three cars.
We hit the trail with high hopes and plenty of snacks and Frog Rock didn't disappoint!
This quest that Little Bean and I have pursued for three years now has been so fun, adventurous and memorable, that it’s easy to forget that it all came about because of a simple need for fresh air and because of the most basic of questions from a child.
Here’s what I’ll say about that: We - all of us - are absolutely swamped, literally overwhelmed every day, by simple questions, by nondescript decisions, and mostly we think nothing of it. We barely even see them.
So, your homework today: Think something of it. Pick something that’s normal and everyday and that you don’t give much thought to, and think about it. Maybe there’s something there that’s bigger, that’s impactful. You never know. Try it.
There’s a lot to be said for spending three years (and counting) of your life finding rocks with your daughter. Trust me on this one! Frog Rock has made all the difference.
Housekeeping: Want to learn more about our Rocks Field Guides, Patch Quest or how to earn a Completion Certificate? Come join our Community Rocks That Rock Group and be part of the fun! Click here: NH Rocks That Rock
Interested in checking out the Rocks Field Guides? Here you go: Famous Rocks and Memorial Stones