I was on the phone this morning, gazing out my rain-spattered kitchen window, when I saw something unusual. Just past the driveway, in a corner where two fences meet, were two ducks. Black-bellied whistling ducks, to be exact. The pair looked calm and companionable, not a care in the world. I tried to photograph them through the window but the raindrops made them “illegible.” So I went out the front door, eased casually up the driveway, introduced myself, and started snapping pics. When they rose to their feet I could see that Mr. and Mrs. Duck were not alone. Far from it! The general drift seemed to be to get the children away from me, though they weren’t frantic about it. No idea where they are now but it was a lovely encounter.