Tag Archives: Migration

Out Of The Blue

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Tundra swans are not your usual kind of Swan. You rarely find then gracing a pond in city park. These are truly wild swans and they come and go from wild places where human don’t often go. They are not especially rare or even uncommon as they are seen often during their migration times. But when you first see one in the pale winter light of a December morning, emerging from the water to stand quietly and let the soft light fall on its body, they seem like the rarest of the rare. A jewel the likes of which could overshadow the most beautiful pearl with their soft luster.

Swans have a natural grace that is apparent whenever you see one but wild swans have an aura about them that their nearly domesticated sisters who reside in our ponds lack. Even when standing in repose like this one, there is a sense of majesty about them. A regal-ness, if you will, that comes from being free and living their lives as nature intended, with no clipped wings to keep them prisoner, or tricked into staying bound to us by being fed foods they can’t always find in the wild. These are the birds that when they fly over us calling to each other, their bills pointing straight into the wind, their wings beating with a strong steady rhythm and you’re sure they are going someplace wondrous, that makes one say “Take me with you. Take me along.”

Try as we might we cannot accompany them. We have to settle for the special moments when we encounter them and they approach out of the blue. We can send our thoughts with them for a safe journey and hopes for a good life and we can let our hearts say “Take me along. Take me with you.” but we are bound here. That’s the difference between us and the wild things. We may take trips and visit exotic places but we will never be truly wild. That is left to beings like the Tundra swan and others that can take flight and go where they wish. One is happy for them, but there is still that thought, how marvelous it would be if we could go too.

Heading Sideways

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If you’re a migratory bird and you’re in-between migrations what do you do. If you just sit around on the lake and eat goose bon-bons all day you’re just going to get so fat you won’t be able to haul your big butt out of the water. If you don’t flap your wings about a thousand times a day how are you going to be in shape to make it to Argentina or L.A. or where ever you’re supposed to go. These are some serious questions you need to be asking yourself before everybody else is leaving and you’re left behind honking in the bullrushes all by yourself.

These Canada geese are pretty fortunate to be summering in one of the most healthy, disgustingly fit places in the Nation. We got joggers, cyclists, runners, high-speed goofy looking walkers, canoeists, rafters, pool players, orthodontists, horseback riders, marathon doers, people who cheer other people doing stuff, and speed-readers. You can’t swing a Do-Do bird around here with out smacking somebody doing something healthy and fit making. With all that do goodyness happening it’s bound to rub off on everything and everybody and these geese are no exception.

Everyday about the crack of ten they’re up and flying laps around the lake. They put on about 60 miles then nip down to one of our healthy but expensive restaurants and have a nice big plate of eggs. Wait, not eggs, I wrote that before I thought about it, A nice big plate of greens, that’s what I meant. Healthy greens, fresh from Whole Greens, our local high-end greens provider. It’s where all the trendy geese shop and freshness is guaranteed. Then its back to the lake and another 60 miles.

Today there was only this pair making the circuit. Its unknown where the others were. Normally this place looks like an airborne roller derby so something must be happening. Maybe there’s a sale someplace. I saw one of the big boxes had a sale on GPS stuff which could come in handy for the fall trip. Little chic looking unit you can wear around your neck, numbers light up so you can see them in the dark. The rest better get back to it here pretty quick, it’s already August and fall is just around the corner. They don’t want to miss the ‘Day of The Goose’ festival down there in South America.