There's a lot to learn from the world around us

The giggles she pulled from her daughter made her smile, her braided tail brushing across the grass behind her. Briar had always wanted to be a mother and now that she had children of her own it truly was as much of a joy as she had imagined it to be. Sure, they brought their own stress and worry with them, but that was a small shadow compared to the bright, overwhelming happiness that they gave her. With her inquisitive daughter settled between her paws, she turned her attention to the world around them, waiting to see what Talyssa would pick out first. She of course pointed out the big pile of logs and sticks that was an obvious obstruction in the river that was flowing in front of them, but then she looked up at her with a very good question. Briar smiled and lifted her paw to point out one of the round, brown-furred, flat-tailed animals as one crawled out from among the sticks and another began to walk out of the tree line dragging another branch over to the mound they were working on.

"See those? They're beavers. They use the wood they collect to build their dams." Lowering her paw, she playfully ruffled the fur on Talyssa's head. "You know what's really cool though, is that it's not just a big pile of branches. They live inside there too. They make a den inside the dam and they swim up into it. So it might just look like a big pile of sticks to us, but that's home to them." She pointed out the swell of water that had grown in front of the dam, adding, "And there, where the water is collecting, could be a pond one day. Maybe frogs and fish will live there and other animals could come and drink from it or swim when it's hot." She liked giving her children glimpses into just how big the world was and how one effect could lead to another. Nature was full of examples of this, but this was a fun one to show her that was still pretty close to home. Looking down to her daughter again with a grin, Briar asked, "Isn't that cool?"

"Briar Carpathius"