On a cool but beautiful Friday in late April, my friend, Evelyn, and I were walking towards the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. The Capitol was on our left, looking especially beautiful--the white dome contrasting with the deep blue cloudless sky. We saw a man and a woman corralling a mother duck and her 11 ducklings. We said, "aw" and decided to help. The brood were headed towards the big avenues which are adjacent to the U.S. Capitol building. We decided to help the nervous mother mallard and her babies, naturally adorable in their fluffy grey and yellow coats and purplish bills.
The moments were special and separated in time from awareness of the voices probably resounding in the nearby buildings. Our main focus was herding ducks across three major city streets--Pennsylvania, Constitution, and Independence Avenues--to reach the pool on the west side of the Capitol. We stopped traffic with the help of a bicyclist.
The four of us had no idea how to get ducks to follow and cross the busy streets. The ducks complied with our gestures and cajoling, though mother appeared stressed and the ducklings tired. Miracalously, the ducks reached the grass near the pool. We let them reach water in their own waddling way.
