Silvoor Stories: Reflections for a time of transition

Mid-May is always a stressful and exciting time for our community as we adapt to rapid change. Local business owners anticipate the annual outflux of students as the spring semester ends. Local gardeners and farmers dig into warming soil as they prepare to grow food and fiber. Teachers and faculty finalize grades as high school and college seniors prepare to graduate and grow into the next chapter of their lives. 

Cool shade returns to our woodlands as the tree canopy leafs out, signaling the end of the spring ephemeral wildflower season. Still, we’re within a good window for planting, so two Miami University students remain busy dividing and planting native wildflower rhizomes in test plots across the upper ravine in Silvoor Biological Sanctuary. 

We are finally planting flowers in Silvoor again. We are implementing plans that were recommended by a team of Miami University Master of Environmental Science students exactly one year ago. It’s a wonderful accomplishment worth celebrating, and yet I have been distracted. Worries about family members’ health and well-being, work tasks and a laundry-list of to-dos swirl around in my head.

As the stressors piled on early in finals week, I found myself grumbling at a gentle rain shower. My student team was still in Silvoor planting wildflowers. I texted them to ask for an update and received an unexpected reply:

“I love how Silvoor turns into a rainforest.” 

This simple statement completely shifted my perspective. Why worry about light rain when there was time for a hike? I snapped out of my funk, threw on my raincoat and stepped out the door — then turned back to grab my binoculars. I was sure I’d missed the annual spring bird migration, but maybe there was still a chance to spy a straggler or two. 

The slippery stone steps below the Silvoor trailhead forced me to slow my pace and walk with care. As I wandered down the ravine, the rain subsided and my ears perked at the sound of unfamiliar birdsong. I sat on a short retaining wall along the edge of the trail, opened the Merlin Bird ID App and hit the sound button to record what I was hearing. To my surprise, the bird identification suggestions came pouring in, including migrants like the Tennessee Warbler, Red-eyed Vireo and Yellow-breasted Chat.

Relief washed over me. Migration was still in full-swing! I stood up and wandered further until I stopped again to watch two resident Pileated Woodpeckers swoop from snag to snag in search of ants and grubs. Their large, feathered frames were reminiscent of pterosaurs. As the rain returned and came pouring down, Silvoor seemed to transform for a moment into a prehistoric rainforest. 

While rushing home to escape the rain and return to grading, I reflected on this time of transition with a refreshed perspective. So, forgive me for this creative license, the platitudes my rain-soaked hike inspired, and this unsolicited advice for graduates and anyone else amid a transition: 

Share what you love. You never know when you’ll inspire someone to snap out of a funk or try something new. 

Take time to wander. Go on a hike or explore however you are able to become more familiar with the next place you call home and all who live there. 

Stay curious. It is okay to not know everything. Be a student for life. Ask for help, seek the truth and check your sources. 

Live in this moment. Don’t let your worries about the past or what you may have missed steal your focus from what’s right in front of you. It can be too easy to schedule ourselves into oblivion with overbooked calendars months into the future. Remember to stop, breathe and step outside. Dance in the rain, celebrate your victories and — above all — be kind. Congratulations, graduates!

Amanda Bentley Brymer is Assistant Director of the Institute for the Environment & Sustainability at Miami University, where she also serves as Curator for Silvoor Biological Sanctuary, part of Miami University’s Natural Areas.