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June 30, 1963 - Vacation time FOCUS Exclusive Sunday Review sketch by Dennis Puleston of Brookhaven on Nature, by Paul Stoutenburgh, Cutchogue Vacation time Last year at this time our fam- ily went on a vacation in t h e fabulous country to the north - Canada. During that time Judd Bennett tock over the column and continuued its reporting without a break. This year we are not going to follow that procedure and bur - den someone with the problem of gathering material, drawings, etc during the summer months. The column will shut down and all wild go for a much- needed vaca- tion. By the way, this will be the first time Focus on Nature will have missed the Sunday edition since the paper's first day of pubbicaticn well over two years ago in March of 1001. Our hope is that in some small way you, our readers have gotten a better look into the won- derful world about ycn. One of the prime purposes of this col- umn is to do just that — to put before our readers some bits of natural history, usually not too far from their back yards, that they will reoognize and appreci- . ate. The variety of guest writers has given you, I hope, a different point of view and by their con - tributions we have involved more people in this undertaking. Also, ' through the various subjects and writers we oped to start the ball rolling fowards consstruc- tive thinking and action concern- ing our natural resources and by resources we mean ever ything thr. i crawls, grows, swims. flies or helps make up the ecology of our exciting world. This is a rather big job in the fast - moving world we live in to- day; ,It's, hard for the average person to,get 'cult of the treadmill of ''society and see his correct place in reference to the things about him, We are no longer co. •rent to I ve besic• the _s_ 11 waters and wondrous gardens that Nature provided. It seems man's ultimate aim now its to change and uproot the natural environment to suit his own per - son ^i ivh'm. • Th's changing of landscape seems to be one of the criteria of success. It's not until all the trees and forests are cut Clown and nothing but the dry baked soil is left that we realize what we have done. It is not until every inch of our creeks a r e dredged and bulkheaded that we wonder what has happened to our crabs and clams and fish. It's not until. every swamp is filled and the black top neatly covering all `that we wonder where the one - time jtays of boyhood — frogs, turtles, ferns, etc have disap- peared to. It's not _ sntil every bit of ocean dune has been dec- orated with monstrosities of all sorts that we wonder where our oceanfront has vanished. Yes, it's riot until all the wondrous God given things have disappeared that we realize the world is be- . coming cold, unattractive a n d materialistic. Few of us realize that today this is being done bit by bit quietly and quickly in the for any sort of conservation what -' soever. Progress is inevitable but I am afraid it will become a nightmare without the' proper direction. That is why for the last two and a half years we have been drawing your attention to the many wondrous things that go into making up the world about us. Whether it be plant, or bird, fish or fowl, each is part of the necklace of wonder that make's the world so bright. Sing - ularly, like the bead in the neck- lace, they are rushing, but gath- ered together and understanding their place in harmony they create a strand of untold wealth. The writing and gathering of information for this column has not been the easiest thing be- cause of the lack of time. I be- lieve every hour of the day can hold some new adventure whether it's with my family, out birding or merely taking a walk. 'Such adventures, if properly schooledz will provide much enjoyment for you and your family. Let us hope that during your vacation this year you will start to catch on to this trick of life by observing the many things about you. Con- template their meaning and won- der. While at the shore, scoop up a handful of sand and water and observe it closely. My little girl, Peggy has this trick down quite well and she continues to amuse herself and delight others with her findings. Only yesterday she found the al- most fully developed eggs of a horseshoe crab 1 a y i n g in the warns sand at the water's edge. Here in its clear ball of jelly, not hardly an eighth of an inch in diameter, you could see a per- feat miniature horseshoe crab "alive and kicking ". Later on she brought me a tiny rock crab fully developed and almost com- pletely transparent. Like most crustacea the young are exact replicas of the adults and so we could determine the common rock crab in this tiny specimen as it started out on its great journey of life. Peter has also picked up this technique of observing and when swimming with his snorkel he will spend hours searching the Bay bottom. Nothing escapes his eyes. Small flounders, or long blow fish, tiny sea robins hiding under rocks, and all sorts of crabs are on parade before his curious eyes. It is this trained observa- tion that makes the difference in one's outlook on our natural world. To them the water is not just a means of transportation but a world of interest and adventure. So this year make your vaca- tion a richer and more reward- ing one ... give it the excitement of discovery and intrigue. Don't be satisfied with travel traveling along with the crowd and seeing only the common •sights of every- day happenings. Open your eyes and mind to the wonder of a fuller life by focusing some of your attention on Nature.