IT’S A BIRD. IT’S A PLANE. NO, IT’S A BIRD.

Going for a run after you’ve been sick (”full of germs,” as Christine might say) is not all that fun. But when you’ve run for years, you just can’t take that many days off without feeling like a schmoe. So there I was, out on the trails at 6 a.m. I felt like I had the lung capacity of a four year old, and my head was spinning. But, 3 miles in, I came upon a little pond–the same body of water I cross every day–and was about to cross the bridge when a great blue heron erupted out of the cattails and flew past me at eye level, not four feet away. These striking water birds can be found all over Texas (and most of the United States). They are graceful when standing and hunting in the water, but they look a little drunk when the first take flight or when they come in for landing–swaying this way and that.

To see such a large bird cutting through the air as the sun came up over the water below us made dragging myself outside all the more worth it. It certainly helped me make it the 3 miles back to the house, anyway.

You can find these and other large waterfowl at most of the area lakes and ponds. You’ll enjoy their elegant nature in and around the water. But it’s their kamikaze and awkward nature in the air that make me smile. (Watch. You’ll see what I mean.) Not unlike my running gait, I’m sure.