Rainy Day Stories

Spring Symphony

One week ago, our village was covered with a blanket of snow and spring seemed to be a distant dream as the ice, sleet, hail, and thundersnow became a regular talking point during evening weather reports.

Our Wisconsin springtimes can be only described as mercurial; and true to form, the temperatures rose from the single digits to the 60's in a few days.  The snow melted and the first daffodils and crocuses peeked out from under the mulch revealing some long-awaited color after months of the stark white landscape of nature's annual hibernation.

I relish strolling in the early morning along the streets in our sleepy Mississippi River village. The only sounds at this early hour are those of our feathered friends.  One of the joys of living in this remote stretch along the Mississippi River is that it serves as a "Flyway" for tens of thousands of birds as they leave their Southern homes and travel hundreds to thousands of miles to return North for the warmer months. Old Man River serves as a navigational landmark for the flocks on their way in pointed arrow formations northward.

Vivaldi's melodic ode to Spring in his "Four Seasons" is lovely, but the springtime symphony I listen to in these early hours could have provided the inspiration for his talent.  The melody is warbled, whistled, chirped by a plethora of throaty songbirds who harmonize in the way jazz musicians jam together without a plan only the influence of what they hear and their mood.  The brassy honk of a gaggle of geese provides a counterpoint to the melody while the tap-tap-tapping of the woodpeckers add the percussion.

As I amble down along the banks of the river, I try to count the different songs but give up with a smile. There are too many to single out. I think it might be pleasant to become more educated about identifying birds by song and appearance.  Something to add to my list of things I'd like to do in my free time.

I can identify a bald eagle and can tell a young eagle from an adult. I know what a red-tailed hawk looks like and have seen the rare trumpeter swan along the backwaters of the river. Robins, cardinals, goldfinches and hummingbirds are all fairly common.  I've even marveled at a redheaded woodpecker, but I know I've barely brushed the surface of the knowledge base of an avid birder.

Many people would balk at living in here. Where's the mall? Don't you have any chain restaurants? What do you do for fun here? I smile because they don't get it. No traffic jams or mile-long lines in a town that's only three miles in length and four blocks wide making it easy to walk anywhere I want. And then, there are mornings like this one when I feel like I'm really living in the moment, so aware of each birdsong, the gentle breeze tossing my hair,  and the warm sunlight on my face.

My morning serenade reveals the marvels of life in a tiny village along the banks of this mighty river.