Rescue

birds with that Z-neck flying over the small Keys to the right.
    “Are those heron?“
    Doris nodded. “Great blues. They live up north through the summer, then come down here when they feel the chill. Like a lot of people.“
    A pair of hawklike birds circled in the air, riding the wind currents. They reminded me of something I’d seen in Maine and on the power poles driving down from Miami. “And those. Osprey?“
    Doris said, “Yes. They nest on the little islands, usually in the highest tree they can find. Mate for life.“
    “Silly notion,“ said Howard, but with the warm smile on his lips.
    We seemed to be in a good spot, as first Doris, then Howard, then I had fish on. Doris brought in a trout about twelve inches, which got thrown back. Howard had a longer, bull-dogging fight from his. Lifting it alongside but not into the boat, he said, “Bonnethead.“
    The thing looked prehistoric, a flared head like a protractor, high dorsal fin. “A shark?“
    “Cousin of the hammerhead. Tough customer, but no good for the table.“
    Mine turned out to be a catfish that fought well, still struggling on the hook as I swung it up. Then it grunted, like Cody, startling me.
    “Weird, huh?“ said Doris, as Howard took the hook out with a gadget that looked like a surgeon’s forceps.
    After we rebaited, Howard caught another keeper trout, then Doris did as well. After the fish were put in the cooler, she said, “How about some lunch?“
    I looked at my watch. One p.m. “I can’t believe it’s so late already.“
    “Time has a tendency to get away from you out here“
    Doris opened a smaller cooler. Smoked turkey sandwiches on six-grain bread, bean sprouts and lettuce for garnish, and some fruit drink packets that were ice cold and great for the mouth and throat.
    I said, “How do you keep these packets so cold?“
    “Freezer. Then I put them in the cooler at the house before we leave. That way, they keep the sandwiches cold like ice packs, but melt just enough through the morning that they’re drinkable by lunch.“
    After a couple of bites of my sandwich, I looked over at the pole holding us. “Why is the top end forked like that?“
    Howard took a gulp of fruit juice. “So you could stand up and pole the boat along, fork end down without sticking into the bottom. Guides here will build a platform over their stem, a kind of crow’s nest for spotting tailing bonefish or tarpon out on the flats.“
    “The flats?“
    “Just offshore on the reef side of the Keys. The guide’ll stand on the platform, watch for tails, then pole the boat along, so as not to scare the fish by starting up the motor to move toward them.“
    A formation of four pelicans flew just above the surface, like torpedo planes coming in under radar. The wingspans Were five feet or more, the bodies looking a lot more graceful in the air than on land or in trees. They passed one of the smaller islands, a few forlorn bushes sticking up through the water.
    I said, “How do they survive?“
    Doris said, “The pelicans?“
    “No, the bushes. How can they grow in salt water like that?“
    “They’re mangrove trees. They’re what make the islands.“
    “Make them?“
    “Yes. You’re seeing their roots, those knobby knees coming out of the water. The tree as it grows kind of ‘walks’ its roots out further and further each year, making soil by holding onto it as its root system expands.“
    “That’s amazing.“
    A shrug. “That’s nature, John.“
    Finishing lunch, I watched Howard, but he seemed all right, not at all ready to be sick as he’d been after dessert the night before. Putting the plastic and used drink packets away, Howard said, “We have three keepers. That’s six fillets, just right for the three of us for dinner. Even when the fishing was better, we always had kind of a rule that when we got enough for the table, we’d stop fishing.“
    I said, “Fine with me. I’ve had a good time. And besides, there are other things to do.“
    “Yes,“ he said, “there are.“
    Doris again didn’t say anything, then suddenly jumped up from her seat. “Oh, Howard, look!“
    About a hundred feet in the air and two hundred feet out, a pair of big pink birds flew from one Key toward another.
    I said, “Roseate spoonbills?“
    Howard went up to Doris, putting his arm around her shoulder as her arm snaked around his waist. She said, “First time we’ve seen any in years.“
    He cleared his throat. “This has been as good