Weekend Walks
Every weekend Lori and I take a long walk on the beach. Sometimes, we walk all the way to the Bug Light (lighthouse) and sometimes we walk in the other direction towards the Cross Sound Ferry dock. Whatever direction we choose, there are always plenty of seagulls around. Having walked the beach every weekend in all four seasons, I’ve gotten to observe individual gulls, and flocks, and how they interact with each other, the water, the wind, their prey and other creatures in their environment. They are good hunters as well as scavengers. They are opportunists. Gulls seem to have an unerring ability to locate the easy touch (me) that will toss them a piece of the muffin she’s eating. Muffins and bits of scone from Aldo’s are just as tasty as spider crabs, scallops and fry.
Sometimes when I see the gulls wheel and take flight it brings to mind the book, Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach. That was a book practically everyone at my college had in her bookshelf. Jonathan Livingston Seagull was not satisfied with the status quo. He was a nonconformist, and was eventually kicked out of the seagull clan because he was unwilling to suppress his passionate need to fly. He left and went on to find other wise seagulls and learn from them. He also returned to gather and inspire other seagulls that wanted to be free.
