Sunny, mid 40s and
breezy
We awoke to a crystal clear December
morning with nothing more than a bit of birding and a bit of Christmas shopping
on our minds. We planned a route
which would take us out to Winding Hills County Park and Diamond Lake in
Montgomery and then back to Benedict Farm Park. Eventually, we would do a little shopping and then head over
to a festive gathering of some of our old teaching buddies at Painters in
Cornwall.
On our way out to Montgomery
we stopped once again at Crest View Lake at Stewart Airport to check on the
ducks. Nothing new, in fact a few
less ducks than had been here a couple of weeks ago. Still, a pair of cute little Ruddy ducks swam in the little
pond on the opposite side of the road swam across the gently rippling water.
We arrived at Winding Hills
and all was quiet. Three mute
swans swam idyllically across the surface of the still waters. A wintery scene of beauty which belied
what was to be.
When we arrived at Benedict
Farm to begin scoping out the fields for some seasonal sparrows our cell phone
rang. It was our son asking if we
had seen or heard the news….another horrific shooting of 18 young children, this
time in an Elementary school in Connecticut. One of the
first victims, an adult, had close ties to our son’s family. What had begun as a beautiful winters day was transformed
into a day of horror for the victims, their friends and families, and the
country. A lone deranged young man
had changed the lives of millions through his insane and unconscionable act. This would be a terrible act at any
time of year, that goes without saying.
At this most holy season, the act is even more heart-wrenching if that is possible. God help us all.
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