最後一週的假日兒童博物館，我們玩拼圖。我選了三組果實和種子，分別是水茄苳、大葉桃花心木和台灣鐵杉。我把畫好的圖切成十二片，讓小朋友重組，爸爸媽媽們也來幫忙。拼圖這件事可快可慢，剛開始我忘記提醒大家圖是直式還是橫式，結果就是到最後得重來。
In the last workshop of the weekend children's museums, our group task is piecing puzzles. I choose the fruits and seeds of three kinds of trees--small-leaved Barringtonia, the mahogany tree and Taiwan Hemlock (Tsuga chinensis).
In the workshops before, children don't need much of their parents' assistance. However, this time, the adults can't help taking part in the game. Some groups work fast, while others take much more time. In the beginning, I forget to remind the groups if the pictures are landscape or portrait, so in the end, some of them have to start all over again.
看起來好像快要拼對了，但方向錯了。因為爸媽和孩子合作，所以我有了意外的收穫，觀察每家的親子互動非常好玩，有些媽媽比孩子們還投入，一位長得像混血的美麗媽媽好喜歡我的圖和植標館的氛圍呢！
It looks like the moms are going to get it right, but the image is landscape. Surprisingly, I get to see the interaction between kids and their parents because of teamwork. Some mothers are more involved than their children. One extremely beautiful mom who looks like a mix seems to love my pictures, plants and the herbarium!
水茄苳的海漂果實完成圖是這樣，不過這已經是另一組的小朋友了。
This is the finished piece, but this boy is from another different group than the moms and children in the photos above.
拼完馬上到戶外實地觀察在豔陽裡茁壯的水茄苳樹、它又叫穗花旗盤腳樹。
We have some small-leaved Barringtonia trees right outside in the garden. Isn't it nice to see with our eyes what we have learned? The tree is also called Powerpuff Mangrove.
水茄苳樹生長在水邊或海邊，因此果實靠水傳播，外皮防水。
Small-leaved Barringtonia trees grow near the sea, so the fruits are carried off with the tide. They are waterproof.
而且果實很輕喔！
The fruits are rather light!
接下來上場的是大葉桃花心木。
Our next star is the mahogany tree.
這一組男孩很認真，身後的媽媽是老師，是第一個問我她可不可以畫畫的大人。
These two boys are very committed. Their mom standing behind them is a teacher. She's the first adult that asks me if she can draw as well.
大葉桃花心木的主樹幹是單軸，樹枝兩邊對稱生長，我在周間趕著畫完，直到週六走過台大的桃花心木道，近距離觀察之後，才發現自己畫得不精準。
The tree trunks of a mahogany tree is symmetrical, growing from the single sturdy stem. I was in a hurry to finish the picture during the week, so it is not until I walk by the row of mahogany trees on the campus of NTU on Saturday that I realize I didn't draw very precisely.
大葉桃花心木的蒴果在三月的晴天爆裂之後，螺旋槳狀的種子就會隨風飛翔，飛離大樹媽媽，到有陽光的空地成家。
The fruits, which look like reddish-brown capsules, split along five seams on sunny days in around March. Then the propeller-like seeds will be carried far away from their mother tree by the wind.
最後是台灣鐵杉的果實和種子。
Our last star today is the fruit and seeds of Taiwan Hemlock.
台灣鐵杉生長在海拔兩千公尺以上的山區。雄花粉隨風飄散，飄落在雌花毬，受孕的雌花毬果把鱗片關起來變成毬果，會從紫色轉褐色，雖然我把毬果畫得很大，真實的大小約1.5到2.5公分。
Taiwan Hemlocks are found above the altitude of 2,000 m in Taiwan. The male pine cone disperses the pollen, which lands on the purple female cones. They are then tightly closed in to protect the eggs. The purple color will gradually change into brown. The cones of Taiwan Hemlocks are about 1.5 cm to 2.5 cm.
成熟時遇好天氣，毬果會打開一片片果鱗，讓帶有翅膀的種子隨風飛揚。
When the seeds are ready, the hemlock tree will cut off its supply of water to the pine cone. This causes it to dry up and open up, allowing the seeds found at the base of the scales to fall or be blown out of the cone.
看孩子們畫畫是很幸福的事。
It always brings me much delight to look at children drawing.
有一群孩子和媽媽實在太可愛了，我忍不住私心幫他們把明信片寄出去。
I adore a group of adults and children so much that I can't help mailing their postcards for them.
戶外庭園的行程超級豐富，導覽詹姆斯先生可以滔滔不絕地說下去。
The tour of the outdoor gardens are super enriching. The guide James can talk on and on when it comes to plants.
千萬不能錯過植標館外的筆筒樹，這可是館的特產啊！
You can't miss the common tree fern outside the herbarium. It is our special feature.
這幾週真的很謝謝館方額外調派的工作人員，還有給我無限自由任我發揮，表面看起來好像是我多做了很多事，但其實我每週六離開植標館時總是無比地開心，能和小孩及植物一起生活，還有什麼好不滿足的呢？
I really thank the staff and volunteers of the herbarium for making all this possible, also, for giving me so much freedom to plan what to do. I seem to have spent much time and effort preparing the teaching materials, but Saturday afternoons are my favorite. I never leave the herbarium without feeling fulfilled during these weeks. What more can I ask for when I am blessed with a life with children and plants?
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