We followed rumors of trumpet worms the way other kids followed new game releases. Knees in the mud, fingers sifting soil, we searched for proof that the world still held something free and astonishing just for us. Each nest we found rewrote the rules of what “enough” could mean. A clump of dirt became treasure. A hollow in the ground became a story we’d tell for weeks.
Those afternoons taught us how to live inside our limits without feeling small. We learned to share discoveries instead of hoarding them, to let awe be a common language when money couldn’t be. Now, when life feels crowded by screens, deadlines, and noise, those memories feel like a quiet hand on the shoulder. They insist that magic hasn’t disappeared—it’s just waiting, low to the ground, for someone willing to kneel and notice.
