Transformation

[vaneramos]

Stop number 12 on the Breeding Bird Survey, Thursday morning at 5:57 a.m.


On the two-and-a-half hour drive alone to pick up the girls Wednesday evening I was still in meltdown mode. Then two good things happened.

First I picked up Marian and Brenna. We laughed and were silly all the way to the cottage, two more hours in the car.

Once we arrived, I quickly set things in order, then went down on the dock.

Then the second good thing happened. Lake Fletcher lay silent except for green frogs chuckling and grunting on the far shore. A screech owl called its eerie “Whoooo!” The air was fragrant with conifers and the water’s sweetness. I sat drinking the luminescent rim of dusk with stars breaking out.

And then a loon shrieked from one end of the lake. Two answered a moment later from the other end. At last there were two groups yodeling and wailing responsively.

Loons are one of the most ancient birds. They have been swimming around lakes uttering this primeval, lonely greeting for 40 million years. Getting close to them, you perceive their intelligence and emotional complexity. Hearing them sing together that way, their sentience washes over you. You feel a part of it, but can’t quite grasp the meaning.

~~~~~~~~~~

I ran the Breeding bird Survey Thursday morning. Details will follow whenever I have time, for those interested. I'm in much better spirits. We're back in Toronto for Pride weekend, and it's going to be steamy: 34°C today and tomorrow. No time for more than this update today; I have to shower and make dinner, then head to a party with Danny and the girls.

To ghostsandrobots: I read the first seven chapters of Foucault's Pendulum yesterday. More later.