The Elusive Bag Bird!

   It is no lie that as you age, things change.  You are on that downhill slide with health issues and an upswing on attitude adjustments.  As the body starts failing, you just give up fretting on pleasing others and you go about with a new outlook that says "Hey, I am going to enjoy life!"  It has reached that point with me.  Things are different, for sure!  One of the problems that I have encountered is the failing eyesight.  Not that it is too bad, I am still just wearing reading glasses but I find that sometimes the wee bit of a blur in the distance can be a bit disconcerting.  My brain tells me what I see is something far different than what it is!  This can be fun...sometimes.

  I recall several years ago, my aunt told me about a group of birders that would often encounter such problems.  She would go with a group of similarly aged folks (mid-70s) and they would often all agree on the identity of a bird only to find that they were mistaken.  Occasionally, the "bird" was not a bird, at all!  A bent tree limb, a tin can or a piece of paper would throw them for a loop!  The folks in the group were all good natured and would get a good belly laugh out of their mistaken identity.  I giggled when she told me the story.

  Well, I giggled yet again this morning.  It happened.  While on the pier, I turned to see a lovely white bird taking flight from the shoreline.  Swinging the camera into position, I fully expected to get a photograph of our resident egret.  Nope.  That "bird" is still in the same flight position this evening.  What I saw in the predawn light was not a bird at all but rather a plastic bag that had blown in with Hurricane Zeta.  I had not seen the bag before since there was no way to get on the pier.  This morning, I edged my way on the temporary boards that Son is using to make repairs and I saw my prize...the elusive Plastic Bag Bird. The memory of the story from my aunt brought peels of laughter and a good feeling.  I miss her.  She and I got along famously.

  Even with the body aging and things starting to get a bit rickety, I am bound and determine to carry on living with as much gusto as possible.  Now that the kids are all grown, it is my time to kick back and do things my way.  It matters not if I see plastic bag birds or stumble upon some migratory rarity, I figure to be out there living.  Make the time for yourself, folks.  Life is far too short to always fret over what others may think.  Have a bit of fun doing whatever floats your boat!  Oh, eventually, the egret did make an appearance so I figured my outing was all worth while.