A pair of irritated swans

No one should ever be bored.

Me, I’ve been entranced twice in the past few days.

The first time was during a drive I took in the direction of Moorhead. As a member of a fishin’ family, I’m very interested in how much ice remains on our lakes–especially in this year of weather curiosities.  There at roughly the north/south center of the state, lakes were open like they are here. However, it had frozen fairly hard overnight and there was a thin layer of ice in places. I saw geese, ducks and swans as I drove.

I am an amateur photographer. My family is often irritated with me when I make them stop to take some “random” picture–usually of wildlife or scenery–along the way. Since I was alone on this particular drive, only a few unknown motorists were irritated with me when I saw a pair of swans swimming close enough to a park to be “in reach” for my telephoto lens.

Yes, of course I stopped.  I guess it would have been nice if the sun had been shining; the stunning white color of the swans would have shown to better advantage. But it was enough for me that the two stayed nearby. After a few nervous honks they apparently decided I was harmless and went back to their feeding.

Especially after interviewing Chasity Marquette last fall and seeing the picture of her holding a swan like these, I have been amazed at their size and elegance. I stayed there snapping pictures much longer than made sense from an artistic point of view.  As I said, I was entranced.

I also stayed much longer than my job would have required at North Waseca Lutheran Church.  There, a crew of three was in the process of reinstalling the stained glass windows they had removed back in January. 

I watched and asked questions as the elegantly shaped panels were removed from their travel wrappings and put back in place. 

The windows are beautiful.

The crew leader, Caleb Penic of Cathedral Crafts in Winona, was ready to explain what had been done to make the windows “ready for the next 100 years.” The three workers were moving from the highest to the lowest points in the church’s interior to get their work done.

As described by Caleb and fellow crew members Neil Callahan and 20-year-old Hayden Strelow, the work is simultaneously meticulous and painstaking while also being utterly magical. Hayden expressed pleasure that, having been the one to repair and reinforce a particular seven-foot-tall panel, he was now going to help reinstall it.

Caleb told the story of an “oh no” moment when a long, tall, sectioned window “folded up like an accordion” in front of him. “At least only one of them broke,” he remembered philosophically. “These things happen.”

We all know people who can tell fascinating stories all night long about a topic that interests them. Caleb is such a person. His energy, his enthusiasm, his appreciation for what he does and how it must be done had me….well, entranced.

Watch for a story about the stained glass windows in next week’s edition. I think you’ll love the photos.