Not the shiny one in Chicago.

Haven’t got a photo of it yet.

This one is from Springfield’s Washington Park right north of South Grand.

The kids first noticed it when one stepped on its seed pod.

It was squishy.

My adventurous son brought it over to the picnic shelter and started dissecting it.

It was messy.

When I saw the bean that came out of the seed pod, I recognized it from my childhood in Easton, Maryland.

I couldn’t remember what tree it came from.

I’m still not sure.

“Horse chestnut” came to mind after a while, but when I Google the term, the seed does not look like it comes in a bean pod.

So, I looked up images of “bean pod, tree” and think I found the answer.

It’s a castor bean.

When you rub them on the sidewalk, they retain heat from the friction.

Then, you can torture a classmate by touching them with the hot bean.

Great fun.

At least, the kids doing the touching thought so.