a few days ago i spotted a lumbering black animal on the bank far up the river. even at such a distance i could tell it was big. my heart did a little leap as i pictured a bear. it was definitely large and black. when marty went to the window he couldn't tell either but he thought from its tail it was a dog. or a wolf, we both guessed out loud, knowing that though rare there are black wolves. but the binocs held the truth: a bernese mountain dog. still, a part of me held fast to a bear-wolf hybrid. which, i know, are REALLY rare.
and today marty said just for a moment he thought he saw an orca near the bridge. it was dark and huge and seemed to be moving with purpose. it turned out to be a tree. still i sympathize with that little leap, that flicker of hope or optimism, because you just never know. i've seen what i thought were coyotes, foxes, wolves, mountain lions, seals, otters, dolphins, eagles, osprey...and sometimes they actually were.
it helps me understand the loch ness monster, the abominable snowman and u.f.o's too. personally i haven't "seen" those myself, probably because i don't really care or wish to (plus i've never been to scotland). i wonder if some people are more inclined to see what we want to, what we desire, in nature, or in other people. i'd rather err on the side of reading too much kindness in somebody or a fox where there's only a cat or a seal when it's only a buoy and risk being embarrassed or disappointed than miss out on the happiness and thrill of the momentarily possible.
Life on the Salt Marsh is a journal of what i am learning and experiencing in this breathtakingly beautiful place, where the Dyer and Sheepscot, both tidal rivers, meet and merge.
Sweet Last Days of Summer
Author
- Rev. Mary
- Midcoast Maine
- Rev. Mary is a Unitarian Universalist minister who served congregations in San Francisco, Sonoma County, Houston, Marblehead and Winchester MA, and New Orleans, in a variety of ways. She is President and co-founder of Gulf Coast Volunteers for the Long Haul and has led 14 service trips to Louisiana and Mississippi since a few weeks post-Katrina. She has 3 children, Sam, 22, Julia, 26, and Jason, 41, and the best spouse in the universe, Marty. She was diagnosed with ALS/Lou Gehrig's disease in 2006. Rev. Mary can be reached at duckdreams at gmail.com. Due to her illness her ability to reply is unlikely but she would enjoy hearing from you if that's OK.
From Mary's Journal in December
after simple surgery turned into a nightmare: "the pain has been excruciating and for 3 days was unrelenting, even breathing was an agony. i tried to picture our mallard in maine who i studied one day when it was freezing cold, windy, pouring down rain and he was in his spot in the grass all tucked up and i tried to imagine how he could handle the elements. i decided he must go very deep inside and have duck dreams. so i tried to emulate him."