Mother’s Day was just yesterday…and the world is finally bursting into spring here in eastern Washington! The grasses are greening, the swallows have returned. Robins are fattening up on wiggly little earthworms. The frogs are singing, the wild turkeys are strutting, and deer are finally back in our neighborhoods.

As I wander the woods and shores around Loon Lake, I am awed and amazed by the intelligent interconnection and design of all of us living beings. It seems we’ve all been waiting anxiously for the lake to melt, for temperatures to climb, and for the fish to be awakened. I feel privileged to have glimpsed a loon on Loon Lake this spring, a rare sighting in recent years. She swam and dove, preened her feathers, then let out a series of her haunting calls. I am guessing her mate was nearby, and she was calling to say perhaps that it’s dinner time.  She dove way down deep, in search of a fishy bite to eat. I wondered what it’s like to see what she sees. I read loons can dive up to 100 feet; and I’ve heard Loon Lake is 103 feet at it deepest.

Would you share your fish with a loon? Most children I ask enthusiastically say yes. And so many adults I meet around the lake, are curious and captivated by the mystical loon. So many feel the love of Mother Nature pulsing through our veins; we see it too in the loon, and the towering Ponderosa Pine.

Why then do I see others, deliberately aiming their boats to run through a flock of waterfowl? Why then do I see trees “harvested” for no apparent reason—their carcasses and limbs left in heaps? Why then do I see piles of trash lining local roads, and even parts of the lake shoreline? What we do to others, we do to ourselves. Our planet deserves better, and so do you.

With Mother Earth and Mother’s Day on my mind; I reflect on my own incredible, loving, kind, caring, fearless Mother and Mother-In-Law. I can understand the love from my Mothers much like the love I witness all around us, courtesy of Mother Earth. I’m wishing you all a very happy spring… and summer too, right around the corner. As the lake population swells this season, as families gather together to enjoy each other’s company; please remember to consider all the beautiful life that lives and thrives around Loon Lake, and that our actions impact one another. We are lucky indeed to have heron and osprey, eagles, loons, turtles, and kokanee in our very own backyards. But the delicate balance that allows all of us to thrive, needs your attention…your care…your consideration. As a neighbor I thank you for helping to keep our lake ecosystem clean, healthy, and vibrant; together as a community we can ensure Loon Lake remains the special place that it is…not only for present, but also future generations.

In the spirit of Love, Mother’s Day, and Mother Earth; please enjoy the above poem I wrote for my own Mothers, accompanied by a photo of the sun’s reflection in the ever-inspiring waters of Loon Lake, Washington.

 ElizaBeth Coira is a Writer, Poet, Workshop Facilitator, Communications & Strategy Consultant, & Loon Lake Neighbor. You can enjoy more of her poetry and photography at ElizaBethCoira.com or HomeGrownSojourner.com.