Once, sitting on the bank of a large pool/small lake at the foot of Mount Robson, surrounded by the most profound silence I've ever heard since standing in the middle of the Great Karoo at dawn, I watched as a Fish Eagle swooped down towards the surface of the water in complete and utter silence. Deftly, and with a single movement, and in the wink of an eye, he plucked a fish out of the water, turned and flew away. From a distance of half a kilometre I heard the tiniest splash as he touched the water and took out the fish. The water had been as flat and motionless as a mirror, but now expanding ripples moved out until they touched the bank at my feet. The sense of profound and utter peace that I had experienced prior to the event, then returned.
It was Autumn of the year 2007. I shall never forget that moment.
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© Harry Friedland, August 2022
