A Swan Song

1 Gliding quietly around her pond was a special treat for Gracie the swan. There had been little peace or privacy in the months since she’d laid her first clutch of eggs. Looking back, almost everything involved was far harder and more worrying than she had expected. The egg laying was truly painful. And there were five fine and exhausting eggs, not the three she had been expecting. The months of nest sitting were surprisingly itchy and incredibly boring. But thankfully, everything improved once the baby cygnets finally hatched. It was still hard and often scary, but the babies were truly miraculous and there were so many chores that there wasn’t time for most of her old worries. But without her cob husband’s help, nothing would have gone very well. He really showed that he wanted to do this with her. Even together, satisfying those five searching and screeching hungry beaks was hard work, exhausting, but ever so worthwhile. That very morning he had finally coached the last of the babies to successful flight. It was glorious seeing her plump cygnets getting airborne these first times. Even adult trumpeter swans took so long to get airborne. It felt fantastic as each baby finally lifted off.

And the cygnets were starting to show individual personalities. The first born girl was very independent and would have to be watched closely. Another was clumsy. One was noisy and the other two were gassy. But, they were all safe, sound, and real, beyond special… she never imagined the pride she could feel.

There had been lots of dangers too-a series of thieving foxes, snakes and a very stinky raccoon had tried to steal her eggs, then hatchlings away. A pair of eagle friends suddenly became ex-friends when they wanted a cygnet bedtime snack. But her cob mate and she had defended them time and again from their hungry neighbors. Some human hunters had come really close after shooting deer and bird friends a few ponds away.

Worst, by far, were the Shatter Winds that came not long after the hatching. Early one morning there was a sudden roaring and shaking from the south. The regular marsh sounds all suddenly stopped. Then waves of foul smelling winds blew through while the roaring noise grew and grew until nothing else existed beyond those horrors and her nest. Over the trees, they saw something rise up, -a burning swan white thing with no wings to lift it, rising slowly, overwhelming in awfulness.

After horrible seconds it had flown away leaving awful smells and the cries of scared and sickened creatures. Even her strongest animal enemies were hurt or upset by it. Afterward, the marsh was strangely still for long, long moments. Fortunately, the hatchlings seemed unaffected, shielded by her own body from the harm. She checked them over again and again while feeling sick herself. Her cob husband soothed and settled her, supporting them all. He wouldn’t admit to feeling sick himself though he ate poorly for days. But his strength amazed her. How lucky that she ever met him and that they agreed to be a couple.

But now with winter coming on and a beautiful day on the pond, she simply wanted to feel the sunshine and glide along, remembering a time when a school of human children had visited her marsh. Some of them had called her ‘graceful’. Later, squirrels, ducks and especially the geese had teased her endlessly about that. But she liked how it felt when she called herself ‘Graceful’ or ‘Gracie’, and paddled along more proudly than before. If she could turn the clock back, maybe she would name her babies as they hatched. This would be new on the marsh. She hoped her babies would feel the same specialness she felt about their names.

2 Late afternoon brought her cob husband back to the pond, to her. He landed quietly but she felt his presence , her heartbeat quickening. She hadn’t a name yet for him but she had been teasing him with several lately. If she was grace…was he…hmmm. Making him laugh with this game after his own long days of fatherhood was a gift no one else could give. ‘Hey… silly, how does everything seem around our marsh’?

‘All’s well as best I can tell. Our swan friends are readying nicely for migration and reports are that the foxes have been bothering everyone else BUT us since I thumped that mangy red one with my wing last month. I wish we could nest in trees like the eagles do! I’ve tried to talk with some of them but now they’re not friendly at all.’

‘Well, let’s get ready for dinner and I’ll tell you some new names I might call you. Our flight south is coming soon and I want to name you in case we get separated. I think of myself as Grace or Gracie now, what do you think?’

‘ I think it’s perfect for you. Let’s swim around and show everyone what real grace looks like before we eat!’

After their meal and mutual deep sleep, the swan couple flew a short morning warmup, readying their flight muscles for their upcoming migration. Close together, they checked on the cygnets and any new friends they were making, looking carefully about for lurking dangers the children might miss. They landed and fussed over them, made sure all were eating well and doing their own flight practice. They talked once again about finding safe places and trusting others. And Grace kept thinking of names she might call them one day. The inspection satisfied them. And as the day was a beautiful one, they said goodbye and flew high above the marsh and up the mountain ridges, soaring over their Kikhtak (Kodiak) island home.

… To Be Continued.