Treasure Hunting

This was originally posted way back in February, but I thought it would be a great addition to the Mom, I’m Bored WFMW. Head over to Rocks in My Dryer for more ways to combat the summer doldrums.

I love secrets.
Not the kind that someone tells you, though I am quite good at keeping confidences.
Instead I like secret Nancy Drew mystery-type things like buried treasure or secret passages.
I have a friend who inherited a house from her grandfather. She and her husband kept finding rusty tin cans of money buried on the property and hidden in the house. One can was hidden behind a false shelf in the laundry room; it held several hundred dollars.
I’ll admit I was absolutely jealous. And not because of the money, but because of the mystery.
And the money. A little.
But mostly the mystery.
Suddenly their house became so much more than an ordinary fixer-upper. That was only its cover. Instead it was a holding place of fantastic secrets. A place where doing the laundry might reward you with clean clothes and hidden treasure. A place where who knows what might be discovered.
All I’ve ever found in my laundry room is tedium.
I have recently discovered an activity that feeds my love of hidden things.

On Sunday, after church, my family set forth on our first letterboxing adventure. Letterboxing is kind of like a scavenger or treasure hunt. Clues are followed to a hidden box containing a rubber stamp and a logbook. Finders record the box’s stamp their own logbooks then use their own personal stamp to “sign” the box’s logbook.
On Saturday, (so as not to break our rule regarding commercial activities on Sunday) we prepared for our adventure. At the local craft store Abby perused the available rubber stamps before selecting one with an image of a fluffy chick on it. We also bought a small journal to use for our log-book. Then over lunch, we brainstormed as to what our team name should be. In the running were: The Spiderwick Chronicles Family (great movie), The Secret Squirrels, The Secret Club, The Silent Stinkers (thanks Bob), and Bob and the Two Chicks.
Finally, using our stamp as inspiration we decided on “Chick-a-dee!” as our name. (I hope my posting that here doesn’t violate some letterboxing rule!)
Back at home, I went online and found clues to a series of boxes hidden around a nearby lake and we were all set.
The weather on Sunday was a sunny 40 degrees. Not exactly toasty, but fine adventure weather. We followed the clue to the first box, hidden in a hollow tree-stump a few paces off the walking path. I thought of all the people that walk by that old stump every day and never know there is something special in it. It was cool to be in on the secret. I felt very Nancy Drew.
Over the course of a two mile walk, we found five letterboxes. It was fun trying to stealthily retrieve, stamp, and replace so the “muggles” (uniformed) didn’t catch on. Halfway around the lake we found a bench to sit on and have a snack. Abby snuggled up between me and Bob as we watched ducks trying to navigate a thin layer of lake ice. A great gray heron walked slowly through the shallows. People on the path behind us passed by without seeing.
I put my arm around Abby and leaned forward to smile at Bob.
Nancy Drew, eat your heart out.