STEELE SPORTS

As of this past year, one of my favorite hobbies that I have picked up and begun integrating into my weekly schedule is birding.

For those unfamiliar with the term, birding can either be just wandering out into nature and observing the species of birds you come across, or in my case, photographing said animals to capture their beauty.

Recently, I captured my holy grail of birds, the bald eagle, and little did I know it would all be thanks to a complete stranger.

As I was leaving Blooming Prairie’s Golf Fun Day earlier this month, I was headed back toward my car when a kind community member noticed I had my camera around my neck.

The stranger approached me and said, “Hey, there’s a gorgeous bald eagle in that tree right up ahead,” and pointed me in the general direction of the bird.

As I searched for America’s bird with my poor eyes – I was born with cataracts, go figure – I finally spotted the bold brown feathers and golden yellow beak of the animal that had eluded me so many times before.

As I got into position to take my photo, I waited for the perfect moment to have the bird look me directly in the eyes.

Finally, right as I had positioned it in a break in the leaves, I got the glance I was looking for.

Click! The elusive bald eagle was finally a member of my personal birding portfolio.

As I turned to thank the fellow who had alerted me of the eagle’s location, I realized that he had already vanished.

It saddened me a bit that I could not tell him how much that gesture of his had meant to me, but his disappearance also came as a life lesson.

What I came to realize that day is that life’s beautiful moments are always enhanced when shared with those around you.

That man did not know me, nor know how many times I had tried to photograph a bald eagle to no avail.

Yet his kindness at that moment, without even knowing whether I would stop to look, ended up making my day and gifting me a memory I will look back on fondly.

No matter your interests or what you may think people perceive of them, I think it is important to share the things that you find fun with those around you.

We are all on different paths in this world, but at the end of the day, we are all human and connected in more ways than we give one another credit.

Share the good moments with those around you, because you never know whose day you might make with even the simplest of gestures.