There are many things about the city of Seattle that I absolutely love. One is that in spite of its overcrowded urban sprawl and nightmarish traffic, it really tries hard to accommodate the natural world whenever possible. The fortune that it spent on fish ladders so the salmon could transit the ship canal is a testament to that.
There is a constant tug o’ war between the needs of Man and the needs of the rest of the world. Seattle seems to be aware of this, and at least tries to make concessions for both. The current environmental situation may not be ideal, it may not be perfect, but the efforts count for much.
Recently, a pair of Peregrine Falcons decided to make their nest under one of our drawbridges. You can hear their harsh kak, kak, kaks whenever they feel that someone or something is threatening their abode. It is a delight to watch this pair from a distance as they take turns doing their parent-y things.
What these birds don’t know is that they’ve just prompted the postponement of several very expensive, well planned and all-too-necessary construction projects. No one wants to disturb these creatures in hopes that they will have a successful hatching. Essentially the city is being held hostage by two birds, and we’re all delighted.
Eventually spring will turn into summer, and the falcons will have fledged successfully (or not) and moved on, and the city will get back to paving and repairing and doing its construction-y things. But for a brief shining moment, it is taking the time to pause for the natural order of things. I like it when all is as it should be. Even cities should stop and smell the roses now and then.
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