Weathering the Storm

It was quite a day on the Bayou!  The "Storm with No Name" hit and hit with a vengeance.  We had been watching a low pressure system in the Gulf for the past few days fully expecting it to form into at least a tropical depression.  It supposedly did not.  The thing was never given a proper name and so we were never overly concerned with its landfall.  We did expect the overload of rainfall and perhaps a bit of wind and were prepared for that.  Early this morning, Mark and Michael pulled up the boat so it would not catch the brunt of the waves and I picked up a few things that might whip around the yard.  Other than that, it was a "stay inside and work on crafts" sort of day for me.  Then mid afternoon, a deluge smacked us good and proper!  Thunder and lightning accented the storm nicely so we sat back to enjoy the view.  Wham!  Winds assaulted the south side of the Little Bayou House!  For the next hour or so, the Bayou was the scene of some intense weather!  Ok, so this was quite as surprise!

Late afternoon saw Mark and me on the pier.  We sat enjoying the coolness that comes after a storm of such intensity.  While we were there, the flock of ducks came paddling back from my cousin's house.  Evidently, they had ridden the brunt of the storm out in her yard.  We watched as this group made its way to their usual roosting spot in the marshes of the Bayou.  I am supposing they were happy the weather had calmed.

After about twenty minutes, a lone duck came paddling across in the same path as the group.  We made the remark that obviously this one had gotten left behind and needed to hurry to catch up with the group.  Just as the duck got in front of the pier, it stopped.  Something seemed to be amiss.  The poor little thing waffled this way and that for a good five minutes.  It looked to be quite concerned about something in its path..something unseen to the humans on the pier. The duck was not about to follow the same path as the group as much as it wanted to do just that.  After a bit, the duck turned ninety degrees to the north and headed toward the shore where the water was not as deep.  Hugging the marshline, the little duck continued on its way.  Mark and I pondered just what scared the lone duck enough to make it change course.  Perhaps a gar or other large fish lurked beneath the water and gave the duck second thoughts about swimming there.  This is something that we shall never know!

The Bayou and all of its denizens are alive and well after the sudden onslaught of a fierce storm.  Weather such as this is something to be reckoned with and not feared.  Here it is to be expected.  Gulf storms whip in on a moment's notice and leave out just as fast.  They clear the air and make us all thankful to be alive!  We, like the little duck, just have to use our heads and choose the safest course of action.  We shall weather the storms that come our way.