Wednesday, February 21, 2007

For the Beating of M y Northern Heart

Too bad I didn't have a camera. Although how I felt at the sight could have never been captured by the lens. Just the lens of my heart.

Where I grew up, seeing moose was a common occurrence. Many times I glimpsed this ungainly and surprisingly swift creatures of the wood, run alongside the road or on frozen rivers. The Okanagan is supposed to be the natural habitat of moose as well. But in the almost 13 years I have lived here, I have seen only 1 who came trotting through the pasture near my house and frightened the horse out of its wits. It seemed to be moving so slowly but on those long legs it was out of sight in what seemed like seconds.

Today while driving home from Kelowna as I passed Wood Lake, I spotted 4 moose on the frozen lake. My heart leapt to see them. I pulled over to feast my eyes and pretty soon other motorists were, too and there was a line up along the opposite shore of the frozen lake as we all watched in wonder. I sat there, my northern heart full, so grateful to have a glimpse at these great creatures. For their part, at first they were walking slowing, single file on the ice. Then they seemed to notice all the people and they just stood there looking at all of us looking at them.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

cool. i've never seen a moose.

Laura said...

that's so awesome. i remember seeing a moose in terrace by the banks of the river. and then i saw one in sweden when i was out in the boonies. it was so exciting for me too.

Mary-Sue said...

I used to have four to 10 moose lounging outside the cabin I lived in when I lived in Anchorage. I LOVEd them, but they were a bit dangerous when letting my dog out in the mornings... Moose roam ALL of the streets there and are such an integral part of life. I've missed them so much since moving here! Thanks for this lovely story. Good thing I didn't know about it or I would've been tempted to dash down there for a look! So glad your northern heart got a peek at them!