Did you see the warrior? I did. He was standing at the tree line like he did a thousand years ago, as I walked toward Rapids Lake. Then he was gone –a ghost from a time long ago.
I scared a pheasant as I started my climb down the ravine. The hen ran into the woods and was gone. This day in May was filled with wonders including blooming -Prairie Smoke, Phlox, Columbine, Pasque Flower and more.
When I got to the lake below, I could see that it was flooded and reaching into the woods. The trees were submerged where the waters had extended into the bottomland forest. Above, a Great Horned Owl left its perch and swung a circle through the trees and over my head before flying off.
I sat down on a log, and began to pull wood ticks off of my jeans… 3…4…7…
The mosquitoes were already out in force, but they were still not ravenous like they would be next month when I would come back here for raspberries. On the ground I saw a feather. The owl had left it for me. Where the water had receded, there were marvelous snail shells lying on the ground.
I moved through the brush to the lower trail. It wouldn’t be long before it would be grown in and nearly impassable. I shooed a mosquito and pulled another wood tick off of my arm. My hand was bleeding from a thorn. I followed the lower trail back out, and spotted a cormorant flying across the lake. Its wings nearly touched the surface of the water as it flew just above.
I climbed back out of the ravine. This time it was a pheasant rooster that flew across the prairie to my right. The warrior wasn’t there now. He knew I was a friend to his land and this lake. He was no longer watching me.
