Dear Tiny,
When I was a boy your Pop-pop and I used to do a lot of outdoor activities together. These are some of my favorite memories. Pop-pop is a really strong bike rider (I bet you he will still be riding when you're ready to learn, so we'll both take you out when you visit Nana and Pop-pop's house!) and he brought me out onto the roads for long bike rides since I was about 13 years old. I'll admit, I was pretty nervous at first, since we would ride on roads that sometimes had a lot of fast cars. I think about your Pop-pop every day now as I bike about 3 miles to work at the Environmental Protection Agency in Washington, DC. Beyond biking, your Pop-pop and I would hike (mostly to Turkey Mountain up in Yorktown), go on camping trips with Boy Scouts, ice skate on ponds in the winter, and build fires in our backyard.
I hope you'll learn to love the outdoors, Tiny. There is an amazing world out there, full of so many plants and animals...each which has its own special name! Don't be afraid to get your hands dirty. And most importantly, don't be afraid to challenge yourself in the outdoors. There will probably be a lot of distractions when you grow up; new technology, busy schedules, and the like. But don't forget to escape it all once in a while. There's nothing better than standing quietly in an open forest listening to everything around you. Pop-pop and I will be right alongside you :-)
Uncle Steve
