Part of our homeschool journey entails getting out and having experiences. Exposing the children to a variety of things in the hopes that said activity will ignite something in them that we can nurture and build upon to support their development into the unique servants of humanity that they are.

It is my goal to do one field trip a month, at least. Last week we went to a zoo, farm and museum all in one,Space Zoo Farms. I typically do my research so I know what to expect from the experience. I knew they had a lion there, which is rare over here. But I was pleasantly surprised at the spiritual parallels I observed during our visit. It was my intention to view and enjoy The Most High’s creations. And since Sukkot is approaching I like us to get out in the open air more.

I believe that our physical experience here has a spiritual parallel because we are spirit of course. Well, as me and my crew, now 7 deep, approached the entrance to the zoo, there was a sculpture of a lion in front. We jumped at the opportunity to get a picture because we always associate lions with Judah. We continued inside where I stepped off and purchased tickets and some food to feed the animals while the crew took in an exhibit by the entrance. There were turtles, snakes, baby chicks and other smaller animals. But there was also a large taxidermy exhibit. I’ll be honest, I cannot handle stuffed animals in this sense. However, smack dab in the center of the exhibit was a 12′ stuffed bear named Goliath.

So I’m connecting the dots now right. I have the lion of Judah outside, Goliath is here as well. Okay. We continue on outside to visit the rest of the animals. Chickens, roosters and geese were roaming freely and constantly approaching because they are accustomed to being fed by visitors. As we throw the corn on the ground, birds began to flock around us. Then two began to fight and one flew up in my toddler’s face. She started to cry, I picked her up and we adventured on. We followed the trail towards the lions and tigers of course. It wasn’t at all crowded because it was the middle of the day on a weekday. (Homeschooler perk). Everyone we ran into was friendly and welcoming. One lady who was about to leave even gave us an entire bag of carrots to feed the deer. As we hiked on, my newborn began to fuss. She wanted out of her stroller. So I rescued her and walked with her in arms. She loves the fresh air. As we got to the top of the trail, there was a shaded picnic area. We gathered under there to get out of the sun for a minute and to plan where to go next. The place is 100 acres so we had to be intentional about our path. Anyway as we stood under this picnic area I began to observe the structure and you know what? It reminded me of a Sukkah! We journeyed on and ran into the rams. My eyes fixated on their horns and I said to my husband “Look, shofars.” We fed them, then went on to give the deer the carrots we were gifted.

Once we got back to the main building, we visited their upstairs museum. There was sooooo much to see. Now I had 4 children on the loose so I wasn’t able to take in the exhibit with the amount of attention I wanted but I came across a bunch of shofars!

You see the brother’s locs?

There were also some “African” artifacts on display and it was like Hebrew connect the dots. I had planned this trip, sure, but the timing was a gift from The Most High. Our outing turned into a thematic representation of our Holy Season!! Specifically of Trumpets and Sukkot. I felt so blessed to have experienced that, the way we did and at the time we did. The Most High is truly Awesome. HalleluYah!

Be blessed and Shalom

Info:

Space Zoo Farms, Sussex County NJ