Summit High teacher Perry Amador (right) practices social distancing with his son Patrick on Tuesday in Redlands.
By John Murphy
Tuesday the CalTrans Girl was working from home and I decided that, strange as it may seem, she might need a break from me.
So I headed from Highland across the wash to Perry Amador’s house in the University Grove section of Redlands. Perry is a Summit High PE teacher and he has three of his kids – all home from school because of the coronavirus scourge – on a schedule that includes schoolwork and twice-a-day walks.
I signed up for the walking portion and we set out at 3 p.m. into the neighborhood, which I immediately noticed did not include as many tattoo parlors and thrift stores as my old ‘hood down near the freeway.
“Look, a coyote!,” Perry’s son Patrick said, pointing toward the backyard of a house.
“Got you!” Patrick added with a laugh as he tricked his dad into looking.
And so it went as we made our way past large houses, past moms pushing babies in strollers and eventually came upon a street lined with fragrant orange trees. Yes, there are still orange trees in Redlands!
So I decided to take a few snaps of Perry and Patrick by some orange trees before they all disappear for good. We also had fun exploring an empty field that may or may have contained the remnants of an old smudge pot AND found a baseball.
The coronavirus threat is awful no doubt, but I’m hoping a silver lining will be parents taking their children out into nature instead of keeping them cooped up inside watching TV and playing video games.
But if you do venture out, folks, remember SOCIAL DISTANCING. Six feet! At least until this nightmare is over.
Main Street Dog 