From Randi.... Saturday morning early

A group of us accompanied Kathy to the prairie today (north rim) where we were met by a ranger who guided us onto the trail by jeep, followed by Kathy's and Julie's van---all the way down to the observation tower.  Prairie still had a little bit of morning dew just beginning to evaporate off, and slight touch of a breeze.  Kathy was overcome with emotion to be in the midst of her beloved prairie, so alive with every bit of overlapping lifeform.  Willie carried her right up the top of the observation tower and once we were up there we all were excitedly exclaiming away---woo hoo! look at the great blues!  look at the whooping crane! where are the bison?!  blah blah blah  until Kathy finally beseeched us to shut up and just listen to the quiet.  And then we heard the sandhills chattering, the redwinged blackbirds squacking, the gallinules peeping, the cicadas making their cacophonous racket....  The white lotus flowers were in full bloom everywhere standing taller than I've ever seen them, the purple of the pickerels punctuated everywhere we looked. We saw a small swallow giving hell to a large blackbird midflight forcing him right out of her teritory.  Kathy had a big beautiful cry with Julie up there on that observation deck seeing, and smelling, and hearing so much.  There was a lot of beauty and wildness in the stillness all around us, and a lot of emotion in the air as we quietly disembarked from the tower and started for home.  We all knew just how lucky we are.     Randi