HanktheDog Blog

I believe in the wisdom of wood storks. They remind me of a book I chewed on as a pup, one of Mike's old anthropology texts (wonderful musty flavor) about people called Kaluli. They believe that some animals, particularly birds, are the visible reflections of human spirits, spirits who reside in the eerie wilds of the Papuan rain forest.

Leave it to humans to see themselves in the creatures around them, yet I understand the Kaluli's point of view when it comes to wood storks. There is something weirdly reminiscent about them as they congregate along the banks of the lake. They put me in mind of a cloister of bald and aging monks moving silently and slowly in white and black robes. At first, they simply seem austere and contemplative. After a time, however, a kind of ancient grace emerges in their movements as they preen and socialize, perhaps as a prelude to mating.

They are so elegant for creatures of such repellent visages. I approach them more quietly than I do other groups of birds, my head down. I even stand still and watch for a while, as Mike whispers something to me from behind. But, after taking one last respectful moment to admire the old souls, my dog nature kicks in and I dash into their midst, thinking, "Get off the carpet you bald bunch of preening, prehistoric escapees from a Doctor Seuss nightmare! This is my lake, damn it! MY lake!" And I half gallop after them with huffing Labrador happiness, meaning no harm yet asserting the age-old dominance of canines over birds.

The storks lift into sky with a lugubrious, long-suffering look that makes Mike feel guilty and chagrins Molly, the family nature photographer. But I've no doubt those storks have seen worse. I even get the feeling they don't much hold it against me as they glide over the lake together, ascending past electric wires and power transformers, then up and across the the sprawl of the city. Below are streets and cars and thousands of homes with humans inside, stonily watching reruns of "Law and Order." Unknown to them, the wood storks soar above on astonishing wings, spirits seeking sanctuary in the diminishing Florida wilds.