I've Got an Itch to Scratch

摘要

I love nature. Preferably from a distance. Possibly with a wall, window, and door between us. All kidding aside, I want to be more outdoorsy than I am, but nature finds a way to keep me indoors. The main culprit? Plants. I marvel over the white and purple clover that dots my front yard. I pat trees and pluck dandelions. But I've never been great at identifying the plants that can cause rashes. Oh, I know that poison ivy has three leaves, like in that rhyme, "Leaves of three, let it be." Except when it doesn't. And poison ivy's leaves are glossy. Except when they're not. It's about knee-high. Except when it's a vine, capable of dropping off a tree branch and ambushing me from above. My love of nature and fear of rashes began when I was a kid, running wild through the meadows (hello, ticks!), climbing trees (hello, hornets!), and wading through creeks (hello, leeches!). I wantonly brushed against everything green and leafy, then claimed ignorance when the rashes started. My parents bought some sort of ivy block, which was like sunblock, designed to prevent poison ivy sap from touching my sensitive skin. It might have worked... had I remembered to apply it.