Tall Grasses on a Perfect Evening

Tuesday night was a perfect evening here in southern Minnesota. We were walking around some local ponds looking for the green herons we'd photographed a couple of days earlier in dimmer light, hoping for a shot at some better pictures. The sun shone low and golden on the wildflowers and tall grasses. It was pleasantly warm, with a light breeze. Barn swallows were skimming the surface of the water and darting over the nearby rooftops. Goldfinches were flying here and there in their undulating way and pausing to snack in an area of tall thistles. An occasional killdeer was standing or running along the mudflats at the edge of the drought-lowered ponds. We saw what we think were a mother and juvenile wood duck in a grassy channel through a sea of cattails. A green heron flew into the cattails, but none made themselves available to photograph. Butterflies flitted. We heard the shouts and laughter of children playing. There were no mosquitoes. It was, simply, perfect.

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