At 43, I explore kayaking with a new love.
Of course I had to look up what it meant when a white egret flew ahead of us for miles. It kept perching just in front of our kayak, looking playfully back at us, leading us down the river like it wanted to show us something. I learned these creatures come to those who find themselves in the in-between places. They are a symbol of purity, long life, strength, endurance. They mean protection. They are pious and pure. It symbolizes marital harmony. (My jaw clenches at that one.) The white egret's ability to thrive on such slender legs will teach you independence and never to be weak or vulnerable in front of someone else. (These seem like my own half-drunk words. This is terrible symbolism.) Probably, humans have fed the egret. Probably, it lingers by us because it wants food. Like loving you, this is easy. The river does the work. We flow, I paddle now and then, you steer. Sometimes there’s a little rush, but it’s nothing we can’t get over. You film a heron with a fish. I padd
