I don’t know why birds so often show up in my life, and therefore in my writing. But they do, often serving as conduits for some sort of metaphor about life. Birds have a particularly Vermont association for me: Before moving to Vermont 13 years ago I lived mostly in suburban or urban spaces and rarely noticed birds. I was younger then, and didn’t have the time or curiosity to pay my avian neighbors any mind. I can’t say that I have more time now, but those birds keep breaking in on me.

Over the past 18 months, great blue herons seem to be following me. My house is situated between two streams, so it’s not unusual for me to glimpse a great blue heron standing gracefully atop its long legs in a stream bed. I’m always stirred by the beauty of these birds’ curved silhouettes. But in the past year-and-a-half, it’s great blue herons in flight that have burst repeatedly into my field of vision and stopped me in my tracks. 

In case it’s been a while since you’ve seen a great blue heron, here are some quick facts: The average great blue stands about 4.5 feet tall, has a wingspan of roughly 6 feet, and weighs between 4 and 6 pounds. These are large birds. When you see one lift off and fly, if you’re anything like me, your first thought is, “Holy cow, that bird has no business flying! How does it do that?!?”

Until recently, I’d almost never seen a great blue heron in flight. Now, I see at least one great blue propelling itself across my field of vision every month. Sometimes they’re flying across my back field or over the trees alongside my driveway, but I’ve seen them all over Vermont. I’ve seen them in California. And one magical afternoon by the Nubble Lighthouse in Maine, I saw an entire flock of them flying over the rocky Atlantic coast. 

Maybe they have been there all along; maybe I’m just noticing them now because I’m looking for them, like a self-fulfilling ornithological prophecy. Still, it’s gotten to the point where I’ve started to wonder:  Is someone trying to tell me something? And not far behind that thought: Should I write about this? 

I just wasn’t sure what, or how.

Click here to continue reading this week’s “Faith in Vermont” column in The Addison Independent.