Monday, August 8, 2011

Our National Symbol

Around 6:45am last Saturday morning I saw the most wonderful sight, though not so unusual around the Puget Sound region nowadays.  As I was driving into Seattle Children’s Hospital heading to work to finish up some tasks as I prepared to begin a two-week vacation, I decided to go across Lake Washington from the Eastside instead of around the north end of the lake.  As I was nearing the Seattle end of the Highway 520 Floating Bridge (also known as the Evergreen Point Bridge), I saw our national symbol sitting on the top of a light standard watching the wetlands for his breakfast.  Highway 520 bisects the Washington Arboretum, which a 230-acre park created in 1934 and located on the edge of Lake Washington jointly managed by the University of Washington and the City of Seattle.

What a wonderful way to start the day!   Seeing a majestic wild bald eagle while driving into a major American city!  They are not an uncommon sight around here; there are several nesting pairs residing along the shores of the lake in our urban and suburban neighborhoods.

On a related note, Jim Taylor sent this photo from the Minneapolis Star Tribune, as have several of you, taken on a June morning at the Minneapolis National Cemetery.  If you have not seen it before, it kind of takes you breath away.


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