A wild-goose chase is an often-used idiom. An idiom is a non-literal phrase or expression whose meaning is not discernible from the actual words of the phrase. From the process of usage, the phrase becomes meaningful. Shakespeare created so many idioms still in use: "in a pickle," "wear your heart on your sleeve," "break the ice," "eat one out of house and home," and "dead as a doornail," to name a few. A wild-goose chase is a foolish and hopeless pursuit of the impossible. I am sure you can think of many examples.
A recent wild-goose chase to Loess Bluffs, however, was not an idiom. It was a joyfully successful attempt to see nearly 600,000 wild geese, ducks, swans, and shorebirds taking a break along the Central Flyway at the Loess Bluffs National Wildlife Refuge.
The refuge is about 7,350 acres of wetlands habitat reserved as a breeding ground for migrating birds located a little less than a two-hour drive north of our store. There is a 10-mile scenic auto tour loop with observation decks and causeways that allow you to really get amongst the thousands of birds. As you marvel at hundreds of thousands of geese and ducks floating on the water and performing aerial feats above through your binoculars, you can see the semi-truck traffic on I-29 and the Loess Bluffs to the east. The birds don't seem to mind the traffic on the interstate.
Loess is a wonderful German word that rhymes with "bus," meaning a fine glacial silt deposited by wind. A long line of loess hills stretches 200 miles along the eastern edge of the Missouri River, extending up into Iowa. Living in town, it is really pleasant to venture out and be surrounded by the magic of nature. Dare I say, it is pretty as a picture, or a sight for sore eyes, or easy on the eyes, just to use a few more idioms.
Take a walk with Birkenstock.
