The landscape folks here at RBC have followed a common practice to simplify mowing and keep weeds from growing up along the side of the building: they’ve surrounded the perimeter with stones.  This, of course, makes it very inviting for children who come around—as well as providing this kid with enjoyment as well.  I could never pass up examining a rock pile—especially one made up of gravel nicely rounded by ages of wear in glaciers, streams, and lakes: God’s rock tumblers.  Our four-year-old granddaughter Danika is the stone junkie of the family, but she’s not yet caught sight of the treasure trove that surrounds RBC.  So here you have an organization that’s been preaching about the Rock of Ages for seventy years being ringed about by the rocks of the ages!  Fitting, I’d say.

When I was about eight, I found a wonderful fossil that I was convinced was a prehistoric animal track impressed in sandstone.  I was sure it was going to end up in a museum one day, but alas, I lost it.  Sandstone was actually a very important item for the OAK Boys (Ohlman, Andrews and Kenfield) as we carried out our childhood work  in Hastings.  Most sand stones we found in our area—and we hunted them energetically—were reddish and quite soft.  We used them as sidewalk “chalk.”  But their prime use was to create an amazing transformation: from cowboys to Indians.  We discovered that if you ground them up with a hard rock or hammer and mixed the stone powder with water, you could make body paint.  We’d take the red mud and spread it all over from head to hip and right down to the finger tips, and in a few minutes it would dry.  Carefully brushing off the sand, we found our bodies looking just like we imagined a Sioux or Ojibwa warrior would look.  “Cowboys and Indians” was hard for us to play after that—because we all wanted to be Indians. So it was Indian wars from then on.  My mom shot a picture of us original “transformers” with her prized Argus C3 camera: just one of many adventures of the OAK Boys she’d attempt to record. (I’m still amazed recalling her level of tolerance —learned by having three boys.  She knew what the tub would look like after this Indian washed off all the sandstone residue, but with our being off in the boondocks most summer days, she did get hours of peace.  A good trade-off I’d say—Marge and I having three boys ourselves!)

Having a fascination with rocks, I was both surprised and thrilled to discover that our fifth grade science project was making a rock collection—which beat the fourth grade project of learning the geography of Michigan, including memorizing the names of all its counties.  Though I was surprised to learn that Michigan had a state rock: the Petoskey stone, a fossil coral found around the Lake Michigan shore in the northwest part of the lower peninsula.  I still remember the three basic rock types: igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic.  And all three are in abundance in RBC’s linear rock pile—a virtual glacial esker.

So sometime this summer Dani and I are going to go hunting for treasure along the edge of the RBC building.  I’ve already shown her and her big sister Elle how to take a rock and turn themselves into Indians. Maybe you can make it a point to take a kid rock hounding this summer too.  Before you do, you may want to refresh your old school knowledge with Andrew Alden’s neat Website on geology basics.  You might also check the “Ask a Geologist” page of the Affiliation of Christian Geologists.

See you outdoors,

Dean