I spent my formative years in the little farming village of Vicksburg, in South Kalamazoo County. Then about 2000 souls, it’s grown to over 3600, as the combination of good schools, friendly neighbors, and abundant lakes and streams keeps drawing people in from the surrounding communities While I was one of the smart ones who couldn’t get my ass to Ann Arbor fast enough, over the years I’ve learned that while my head went to Ann Arbor, my heart, or at least a good chunk lf it, remained in the ‘burg. So when I learned from Sue Moore, late editor of the South County News, about her little monthly, I had to start getting it. Back in college, I subscribed to the Vicksburg Commercial, then a weekly run by Sue’s dad, Meredith Clark. My more sophisticated dorm mates got many a good snicker out of the goings on back home described in that paper. The SCN is free, but I send ‘em a check every so often, getting my name in the back of the paper.
The SCN offers much more than illustrated obits, although I’ll admit that’s a part of the paper I’ll never miss.
Kathy Forsythe-Oswalt, retired high school teacher now editing SCN always sees that something pretty spectacular goes on the cover. She outdid herself in January, when her cover looked like this.
The Great Blue has been my spirit bird for as long as I remember. When I catch one curling about to go for their prey , I imagine my own lanky frame uncoiling for a task. For a long time, a Great Blue called this area his home. He had a favorite fishing spot as the sluiceway off the Huron at the Argo dam went to join the Huron River. I know from watching his successful stabs and shakes that it was a good spot for him. The sluiceway was along a path on which I used to run back in the day, when I still did that sort of thing. It was always a special treat to run by and find him fishing. A few years ago, the city decided to make that sluiceway inlet into a whitewater course. The gentle rush of water en route to the river, dancing over rocks, was replaced by a paved waterway. That washed away my Great Blue’s fish and he departed.
So, I don’t see a lot of Great Blues anymore. So, Imagine my joy at seeing that cover. I knew that Kathy had featured some heron stories from a Jeanne Church, a boomer amateur wildlife photographer who has a thing for herons (1).
I wrote Kathy for contact info on her photographer, asking specifically if she had a gallery or sold her work. Jeanne quickly answered, including JPEGs on 5 heron shots. Now I have a dilemma as to which I want on my walls! Having tried to get these images to friends who also love herons, and failing, I decided to go the blg route. Who says a blog post can’t be something for a picture book?
So, here ya go with the cover boy
Is it just me, or does he look pissed?
So, he’ll just wave you away!
Is there anything more elegant than one of these birds in flight?
And as they search for fish, they’re at their most serious. Seeming still, they’re always moving. Check out that leg.
Again in flight
Ya loved me for my body, didn’t cha?
Makes ya wonder why God chose storks to deliver babies. Well. Storks are way less cool than herons, even though they’re closely related. Can you imagine that face above bothered with a bundle of baby? Sounds like a fantasy story: superhero to me delivered by a Great Blue. Talk about high expectations!
Till then, enjoy your time in the woods and treasure those moments when a Great Blue flies across your sky.
References
- Church J. The magnificent great blue heron. South County News 11/16/21. https:///southcountynews.org/2021/11/16/the-magnificent-great-blue-heron
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