Recently while walking through Drake Park I witnessed a bald eagle dive bomb a flock of ducks, nearly getting one. The duck got away and my companion and I stood in awe as the eagle flew directly over our heads and landed in one of the lodge pole pines. There was a young man standing about five feet away from us with head phones on, oblivious to the seven foot wingspan right above his head. I tapped him on the shoulder and pointed out the bird, still in the tree. He grinned sheepishly and replied, "Damn iPod."
Oddly enough, almost the same thing happened a week later. I was on the bridge in Drake Park when all at once the ouzels and ducks nearby took off in a panic. Sure enough, there comes the eagle, right over my head. This time, I could see every detail of his shaggy head and beady little eyes. A woman on the opposite end of the bridge was jogging with headphones on. I shouted, "Ma'm!" Then "Hey, Ma'am!" in an awkward mix of urgency and attempted politeness. She didn't turn around.
Since that odd week of eagle sightings that only I could "see," I have been noticing the eagle everywhere, both while driving and in the park. I learned that it is a seasonal nesting ground for him.
It's like when you finally notice something you start seeing it everywhere.
So, if you don't want to turn your music down to allow well-meaning strangers to point out things you may be missing- eagles, fire, alien spacecrafts landing- at least look up every once in awhile.
- Jamie Houghton, Bend
