I live in a part of the world where nature is not too far from the human-constructed. And of course I live two blocks from the river.

There are a lot of things we do wrong to nature, and particularly to our river, but still the river is powerful. A couple years before I came back, they started reintroducing eagles to this area. And they’ve flourished.

Now of course we’re messing up the river with fracking and factory farms. So much for our understanding of what’s important. So much for our reverence for our national symbol.

Will they survive? Will we?

But what I thought about as I was writing this was whether or not we honored the eagle’s keen vision or just the power of the predator.

They’re not rapacious. They eat that they might live. May we do the same. Happy Fourth of July. Let us be reflective about Peace, Justice and Freedom — for everyone, not just for Americans. Happy rainy Fourth of July.