It’s not at all uncommon for me to spot a hawk perched proudly in a tree alongside the highway, or purposefully soaring over the median in search of small prey. 

Yesterday, while driving along Route 8 in Connecticut on the way to Jess’ parents house, I thought I saw just that.  But after a second look I realized that it was actually a Bald Eagle!  I have never had the opportunity to spot one of these rare birds outside of a zoo or magazine.  So naturally I was excited.  So excited, in fact, that I smacked my head on the doorframe of my car as I quickly craned my neck so that I could continue to watch as the eagle flew perpendicularly across the highway. 

For some people, this wouldn’t be anything to get worked up over, either because they’ve seen many an eagle, or maybe they just don’t care.  But I get excited everytime I see a hawk common to the area, so you could imagine the adrenaline working when I saw something entirely new.  Besides, I try to really take in every experience, even if it is "the same", it’s technically never the same. 

Unfortunately, I didn’t have a camera more powerful than the one built in to my cell phone, and so we didn’t stop and try to capture a photo of the bird.  But it makes me regret times like that when I don’t divert my course of action to enjoy a spontaneous moment.  This time I was also without camera, but that’s no reason not to indulge!  Of course, that also means I don’t have any pictures to share, save the ones I can paint with words.

Either way, it was very cool.