THE REVELATOR • July 23, 2021
Our small family knew bobolinks from a bird refuge four hours away. Each spring we made the trip with our daughter in hopes of seeing the 90-plus species of migratory birds we typically spotted over a binoculared weekend. When we found the bobolink’s rambling song rising from the fields alongside the road leading to our campground, we knew we’d arrived just where we should be — and right on time. Our 5-year-old daughter began to sing for the bobolink. Inspired by the bird’s flitting from grassy perch to golden ground, by his piccolo song, we found ourselves crafting a round, a trio of distinct melodies harmonized in circling chords. But then one year our song went unsung, our round vanishing with the bird. The bobolinks have returned to the refuge fields. Their numbers are increasing there, but we know better than to give up our concern, because the birds’ presence at this one protected location belies their globally diminishing numbers. ~ Rochelle L. Johnson