Ulog 22: Notes from the middle of my night about The Great Blue Heron in my life.

This Ulog Story Time is in response to the @steemusa Thursday Writing Challenge. Today's prompt is "Little Blue Heron" but in Texas everything is Greater. So.

I was going to tell you about the time that a great blue heron laughed at us as we approached the rapids in a New York river where my friend thinks she nearly drowned me and my husband became vexed beyond words trying to rescue me with a submerged canoe and I thought they were both daft. I was perfectly anchored to a perfectly stable rock and perfectly able to wait for a better offer from someone who was bound to come along with a non-submerged canoe. But! To find that glorious photo, I would have to get out of bed and fire up Mama Bear PC and probably wake the sleeping husband and I've already kept him awake by tossing and turning. And he actually has to leave the house in about 5 hours and function. So.

Instead I am going to stay very still in my cozy bed and I will draw on my phone's keyboard to tell you about living near a few elusive herons on the shores of Lake Tawakoni in Texas. Settle in, let's get started.

Into every pain some paradise must fall!

Twice we were privileged to live on the shores of Lake Tawakoni. It was a crazy crazy time. I loved it and it was also during one of our most excruciating times.

Some people go to college to learn to program. My husband was offered an apprenticeship type of arrangement and for about 3 years we had next to nothing.

There was also Army National Guard drama and multiple life changing family events and dramas. And we ended up driving a $25 car that was as dreadful as it seems it should be. All the same, I finally realized I should be grateful for it just to be done with having to ride around in it. The Ungrateful are seldom rewarded with upgrades.

Oh and I should probably mention the first six months we lived in a tent. In Texas. In the summer. With an air conditioner. More real true love for camping like that but it was a record year of rain ... Before years of drought but yeah ... After that we moved into an old RV.

In short, we pretty much stayed exhausted.

Cue the rainbows and unicorns herons!

There's nothing like living in the middle of nature in trying times. There were glorious sunrises and sunsets and rainbows and the colors of the seasons.

There were 4 leaf clovers and little wild flowers. There was a little brown dog that would run to meet us when we came home and express her unbound excitement and love for us.

And then there was the great blue heron. Yes singular. I never saw more than one at either location.

I'd never seen a bird that stalked around on long long legs and sat so still with such a watchful eye. Both were incredibly shy. And yet it was like each time I saw him, I was suppose to see him. I was being allowed to see him. But it was only long enough for him to be sure I saw him in his glory.

I can't explain why a simple bird would give me such a lift on the wings of fascination but I greatly appreciated his efforts to appear on really rough days.

But he was not big on being photographed.

Photos because it did happen

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I had these few photos stashed online. I am not sure they will have any quality left to them by the time you see them. I have my phone light dimmed so, I'm totally guessing they're good enough. I'm still missing one of the Texas photos besides the NY photo perhaps they will visit on another day. I'm hoping to sprinkle in a few more photos from the lake before I max out my limits.

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