September 2

On a warm and sunny afternoon, I’m hiking in Lusthusportens Park along the shore of Djurgårdsbrunnsviken, a bay on the north side of Djurgården Island, one of 14 islands that make up the metropolis of Stockholm, Sweden. This landmass is a tranquil oasis of parks and nature trails very close to hustle and bustel of the city. Following a paved path, I spot some familiar blossoms of St. John’s wort as well as a Coot and a female Horned Grebe swimming far off shore in the brackish water. Further ahead, I notice some Tansy blossoms along with a stand of Phragmites. Where as this reed is highly invasive in Michigan, the one here is not. Be that as it may, there are proposals to harvest the stalks, compress them into pellets and burn them in combustion units as a source of heat. Also, investigations are under way to establish reed plantations in exploited wetlands. Nearby, I come across the only cluster of Purple Loosestrife seen on my hike. However, this plant, another Michigan invasive, does not appear to be spreading along this shore. As the trail meanders, I spot the white, grape-size fruit on a Snow Berry shrub as well as the reddish, olive-size hips of Wild Rose. In the fall, the ripe, red hips are picked, dried and mixed with water, flour and sugar to form a soup called Nyponsoppa. Swedes serve it as a beverage or a dessert with vanilla ice cream along with small almond biscuits. Moving along, I pause to watch a bird in the underbrush; similar in size to a Chickadee, called a Great Tit, a common resident throughout Scandinavia. Also, not too far away in the shallows, a Great Blue Heron hunts for food. Next, the trail veers away from the water into a dense forest of oak and maple where I see blossoms of Alpine Blue Sow Thistle as well as Rose Pink Drift. Turning around, I retrace my steps back to the trailhead which is an open area where I look up to see the spiny husks hanging from a Horse Chestnut tree while under the tree, a few Barnacle Geese are foraging. Finally, I hail a cab for a short trip back to the hotel.

I searched the city

Noisy traffic sound

Searched everywhere

Looked all around

I drove to the east

Walked to the west

I could not find it

Could not rest

Found it in a park

Mother Nature fair

Away from urban din

Finally found it there

D. DeGraaf