Baby Ducks

Notes from a walk by a pond

Spring time in the park. I am walking down by the pond and there is a mother duck leading her flock of babies around. These ducklings are cute. Little balls of fluff floating on the water. Cute to just look at and cute to watch. They follow their mother and trail behind in the most adoring way. The whole lot of them. Sometimes a baby will wander a foot or two off course as it dips its little beak into the water to eat. Then in a panic it swims back to the mother.

Paradise for a duck is a shallow pond in a public park. Not a predator in sight and the humans are throwing these cute little guys more food than they can eat. This morning I saw a nearly whole loaf of bread floating in the water. Did someone think a duck would eat that?

Walking back home I wonder if the ducks appreciate the sunset over their safe little pond. The yellow light fading into orange then a pale blue twilight. Certainly they don’t appreciate the old lady with a red wide brimmed hat, or the cute girl jumping rope who I thought looked at me but never really made eye contact.