Duck, Duck, Goose!

Many years ago..perhaps eons..when I was a mere child, whenever a group of children were together we played a game called "Duck, Duck, Goose!" All of the children would sit in a large circle facing inward. One player would be chosen to be the "Fox". The fox would walk around behind the children tapping them on the head calling each a "duck" and finally one as a "goose". The goose would jump up and chase the fox around the circle. If the fox made it back to the empty space before the goose caught him, the fox would sit in the circle and the goose would then become the new fox. The game would start anew with the new fox tapping each until a new goose was chosen and the chase would begin again! This was a great game as any number could play and it provided plenty of exercise! This was back in the day when children actually played outside! Yes..we actually did run around the yard, got dirty, smelled sweaty, got chiggers, had grass stains on our clothes and had a wonderful time!

Today when I was heading to the pier, I noticed two ducks just hanging out enjoying the sunshine! They have been visiting the pier for the past few days. Ms. Ez and I stopped and watched the ducks for a good while. They did not seem overly perturbed about our sharing the pier with them. Not once did they appear to be frightened enough that they might fly or make a hasty exit into the water. They just sat! Ezzy did her best to sit still and not try to "retrieve" these ducks. It would have been a natural instinct for her to chase them since this dog is part Labrador Retriever! She restrained though and sat at my side. The ducks appeared to be Mottled Ducks which will nest this far south so perhaps they will be my new neighbors! Last spring, we had seventeen little fluff-balls hatch in the Bayou! I am hoping that this tradition continues and we soon have hundreds of these ducks calling the Bayou "home"! My cousin, Michelle lays out a fine meal for the ducks each day so with the ready food supply and ample nesting areas maybe they will stay put!

As we were watching the ducks, Ms. Ez suddenly became extremely interested in something behind us. A sort of gurgled growl caused me to ponder just what she had seen. Since we just killed a cottonmouth moccasin in the yard, I was a tad concerned. I slowly turned to come almost face to face with a goose! A beautiful Canadian Goose was just paddling around near the marsh. Another waterfowl that had no fear of me nor Ms. Ezzy. This one, too, most likely feeds at Michelle's place. Usually the geese will be in pairs but I could only see the one. "Where is your mate, Goosey-goosey?" Ezzy and I pored over the marsh line...no goose. I silently hoped that one had not been killed. I will have to ask Michelle if the other has been coming to her place. It would be sad if there is only one.

Two ducks on the pier and one fine goose in the water! I do believe this was a successful visit to the pier! Duck, Duck, Goose!