On the mystique of a feather

Canada geese get a bad rap around Bella Vista. However, one of these guys really did us a favor by dropping a long, black, wing feather.

The day after we got our 9-year-old granddaughter for a summer visit, Grandpa Doug came home from a round of golf with said feather.

Melanie was at once interested. She looked and looked and commented on its asymmetry as we pondered the reasons for that. The feather went under my needlework light and magnifier and was infinitely analyzed. She was intrigued by the way each part of the feather had barbs on it, and the barbs had barbs, and even those barbs had barbs. She took it apart, arranged the clumps into designs that no self-respecting goose would ever dream of and then smoothed it all back together in proper goose fashion.

We pondered why the feather should be so constructed. This activity went on daily, and the feather's permanent place was the coffee table in the living room.

Who knew this feather would hold such endless fascination. We grandparents sometimes worry when we have our grandchildren that we will not be able to entertain them sufficiently, or that they will get bored with what we and Bella Vista have to offer. We should not underestimate nature's offerings. We certainly have much of that in this beautiful place.

Alas, we thought Melanie would take the feather home, but she decided that it needed to stay in Bella Vista. It now graces an étagère, along with other collected things.

And, grandparents everywhere, the feather even trumped the iPad mini! Will wonders never cease?

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Farner is chairwoman of the Library Advisory Board. The opinions expressed in this column don't necessarily reflect the views of the newspaper.

Community on 10/01/2014