I started this journey with many assumptions. I knew before I left that I would be wrestling with preconceived notions of all of the places in the country where I haven’t been and really, even of the places that I have.
I was expecting Olympia to be a tiny, rustic town with log cabin-style houses, very little (if any) cell service, snuggled deep into the mountains and completely surrounded by nature.
Olympia wasn’t how I pictured it in my mind, but the vibes I imagined were right on point. Despite staying in my friend’s downtown apartment, I felt close to the earth in Olympia, like nature was just a step away–and in fact, it was.
My friends took me to a river where I dipped my feet into the clear water and let the icy cold flow of melted snow nip at my toes; and then afterwards, we went to the skatepark. Even there, closed in by a chainlink fence and sitting slouched against hills made of concrete instead of trees, we saw a Bald Eagle being chased away by a flock of crows protecting their babies.
“Isn’t that our national bird or something?”
“I think so. It looks like the one that’s all over our money.” My friend’s answer came without enthusiasm.
As we continued to watch the crows’ pursuit of the eagle and the eagle’s pursuit of the crows’ babies, I thought about the fact that such a predatory creature was chosen to represent our country.
“Why do you think the eagle is our mascot?”
“I don’t know, probably because it’s fierce.”
Eagles may be fierce, but so are elephants, and even fluttery creatures like monarch butterflies and clearly, crows have a fierceness about them too.
“Maybe it’s because Eagles go after other birds’ babies and then the other birds have to band together to fight them off.”
“Yeah, that makes more sense.”
We continued to watch the eagle soar until the persistence of the crows overcame the persistence of the predator; and then we watched the eagle fly away into the hot afternoon, the white feathers on its head glimmering in the sunlight.
**photo taken at iron creek falls in Mt. St. Helens National Park, WA
Wandering Woman 