Every winter, hundreds of bald eagles travel south down the Mississippi corridor to the open waters along the dams. Many of these dams are along the Iowa/Illinois border.

I’ve tried to put to words the things that make bald eagles majestic. Is it the golden beak? The contrast of head feathers with the chest and wing plumage? Or is it the seemingly effortless flight? In fiction, eagles have always been symbols of reverence, majesty, and spirituality. They are held above common things and places. So what makes them seem that way in real life, too?

Perhaps it is none of those things. Maybe it’s because when I see a bald eagle, it’s usually in clean, wild places.