Adventures In Snipe

I went on a snipe hunt once. It was when I was a fifth-grader and a cub scout on an overnight outing at Bay City State Park. Our scoutmaster split us into two groups, each in a line with one line marching towards the other through the brush making lots of noise to herd the birds into our trap.

My line laid low, camouflaged, large bags in hand, waiting for the wily birds to fall into our clutches while fleeing the ruckus. Alas, we came up empty-handed. One of our group almost caught something, his excited shouts for help bringing a few scouts and a couple assistant scoutmasters running to his aid. But whatever it was, it escaped.

When I reported our adventure to my parents after our return, they snickered. They said it was all a joke. There was no such bird as snipe. Not true. Fortunately, my parents had purchased a set of World Book encyclopedias and I was able to show them the article and a picture of the wily bird itself. They were unconvinced, however.

I was reminded of that incident when wife Wendy and I recently saw the Pixar movie Up. In the movie, a curmudgeonly elderly fellow tries to shoo from his porch a young Explorer seeking his final merit badge, which must be earned by assisting the elderly. The senior citizen finally relents, sending the youth out to find a snipe that he falsely claims has been lurking around his house.

Though Up appears in previews to be a kid's movie in the Toy Story mold, this joke, which probably went over the heads of most of the kids in the audience, resonated with me. As did much of the rest of the movie, I must admit.

I found the movie's opening particularly touching, where a young boy and girl meet as fellow explorers and form a bond that lasts a lifetime and beyond. Their dream is to fly off together to Paradise Falls in South America. They even have a large jar where they throw spare change so they can afford to go some day. But other emergencies always intervene. And time has a way of slipping away unnoticed as we all know.

I'm not sure young children would connect with the adult themes the way I did. And I suspect many others whose lives are largely past them. Anyway, I give both thumbs up to Up. It makes you think about what's important in life. For example, the adventures you can spend a lifetime planning often aren't as memorable as the adventures that just happen. And that you're never too old for a new adventure.

Kinda makes me wonder if there aren't some snipe lurking in that wooded, vacant lot by the library. Where's my adventurer's hat? I haven't worn it since the last family canoe trip. Time to don it once more.