For one so young, there is no thought as to what may happen after acting on an impulse. To a young girl, a ditch full of thick, wet mud looks like a great deal of fun; but what happens after the fun? Out for a walk on a cloudy day (I added this: with the Wild Craft Play group and mentor, Jamie Black, eight year old Jenny notices an entire field that is all mud and puddles. Quite a contrast in the middle of the forest. As her group walks down the trail, Jenny looks into the ditch.

“Wow, doesn’t that look like fun!” Almost a flowing creek, the ditch is wet and full of mud.

“I bet I could make quite the splash in that ditch! Look, there is even a big, squishy, muddy part in the middle.” Not stopping when Jamie tells her to be careful, Jenny runs to the side of the ditch and jumps right into the big, muddy area. She looks back at the group with a huge grin on her face.

“Did you see that? The mud splashed higher than my head!” Jenny’s legs start to quiver. Her body starts squirming. Her big grin turns into a look of shock and fear.

“Uh, oh. Help, Jamie! I can’t get my boots out.”

Jamie looks at her with a shrewd tenderness. “I’m sorry, Jenny. I didn’t wear my galoshes today. If I go in there to help you, I’ll just get stuck too. You will have to get yourself out.”

Jenny starts to panic, “How can I get myself out? I can’t do this myself! I need help.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll get you a stick,” Jamie encourages.

Once she has the stick, Jenny pokes it around in the mud uselessly and stubbornly insists she can’t get out. Looking up, Jenny realizes there will be no one to help her. She finally accepts that she must dig herself out. Jenny now has a look of intense determination as she pushes the mud away from her boots. Little by little, her legs are able to wriggle around until finally, with a loud suction sound, one boot comes out of the mud. She is careful not to get it stuck again. As she works, the other boot slowly oozes out with a relieving “plop” as it appears completely.

“Yay! I got out!!!” Jenny joins her group on the trail as they celebrate her valiant efforts.

“Nice work, Jenny!” Jamie gives her a hug. “I bet that made you hungry for lunch.”