Ditchbank Diaries: Walking & Talking

Spending time in natural spaces is a tried and true way for humans to level up their health, peace and perspective. Sometimes there is nothing quite as lovely as the sun on your face and the earth beneath you.

Valencia County has many beautiful natural attributes in every direction and my love for the banks of the Rio Grande is strong and deep. Exploring along the sandbeds and shallows on a Saturday afternoon is my definition of a good time. (I always make sure I’m safe, Dad!)

As a child, my backyard was the actual mesa. I learned to appreciate the stark beauty of a deep arroyo while discovering the curious beauty of an apache plume. The satisfaction of searching for hidden barrel cacti with their erupting and brilliant red and yellow blooms was exciting.

Noticing the frequent and deep snake holes and dens reminded my brother and I to watch out for the guaranteed sunning rattlesnakes on the rock formations and intricate sandstone layers.

As an adolescent, my scenic view shifted to the bosque, and I spent lots of time up and down the ditchbanks behind our field with my prized Diskman listening to angsty ʼ90s alternative music or riding bikes with my friend, Celeste, discussing boys.

As an adult, in each state I’ve lived, I’ve sought out some kind of water to walk by or some trees to talk to. As I have incorporated this core value of being in nature into my current life, I’ve taken to walking on the ditchbanks of west Belen.

My ability to focus on meditative thinking, praying, self reflection (and sometimes singing if there’s nobody around) has helped to clear my mind and move my body in the process. Enjoying brisk cool air in the mornings, cotton candy sunsets in the evening and fleeting glimpses of tumbling raccoon cubs on my walks has reminded me just how beautiful Valencia county can be.

Even though these walks started as a way for me to focus on me, a magical pattern has emerged on these intended solitary walks. Each day, the life and times of many Valencia County residents unfold in the slow moments between mosquito swarms and parading peacocks.

At any given time of the day on a ditchbank near you, there are seasoned farmers greeting each other, parking their weathered trucks, briefly clasping palms and talking about the water levels.

There are Rio Grande conservancy ditch riders keeping things in working order, checking tirelessly to conserve our precious water while facilitating water for our crops.

I see faithful people who exercise every day at the same time, always briskly, but never too brisk to give a smile and a nod. I also see folks walking along with their furry friends, spouses or schoolmates.

As a mother, my favorite thing to see are families walking along the bank. Mothers or grandmothers with little ones, couples walking with eyes only for each other and multi generations visiting and walking. This is the real beauty in our community and one I want to highlight and celebrate in this photo column we’re calling Ditchbank Diaries.

If you are ever spending time on your ditchbank and you see someone with a questionable hairdo and an iPhone handy for photos greeting you and asking for your story and a picture to commemorate the moment, will you indulge me? Your community wants to meet you.