The Three Marshketeers
It is “Red sky in morning. Sailor take warning”! Well I am warning you know. The Editor in Chief isn’t going to like this story. But I have to tell it anyway. It happened on the marsh today. A brutal crime occurred but the perpetrators were apprehended. For a while that is. It is the saga of The Three Marshketeers.
They are an unlikely trio. They come from vastly different backgrounds. Tito the Tricolored Heron is a doubtful drifter of sorts. Enrico the Snowy Egret is the one with a temper. Angry, brash and compulsive. Unlike the three “Musketeers”, his motto is not “One for all and all for one”, but “One for all and all for me”. But the real brains of these three desperados is Jose. He has a stilted background but is clever in all his deceitful ways. Although short in stature compared to his friends, this Sandpiper stands tall in his own mind and stilted legs. Together they are the notorious Three Marshketeers. Armed with three sharp tongues and beaks, no traveler is safe on the marsh with these feathered fiends around. Very few have ever seen their faces before. If you see them they would look like normal birds. They gather in silence this morning on the marsh as they plan their evil deed. An unsuspecting grebe just out for breakfast swims by. Tito strikes up a friendly conversation with the grebe while Enrico circles around for an ambush. And then they strike. Enrico is relentless. In a matter of seconds it is all over. The grebe escapes with his feathers, barely. But the Three Marshketeers have struck again. Suddenly the long arm of the law is seen in the distance. Well more like the long beak of the law. Sheriff Ibis and his posse arrive and apprehend the trio. Mug shots are taken. Then Enrico makes a dash for freedom. Jose slips out the back unnoticed. In the commotion Tito also escapes. But thanks to Sheriff Ibis and his posse we now have good mugshots of the three bandits. Soon the whole marsh will be looking out for them. In the meantime, walk softly and quite in the marsh. The Three Marshketeers are still on the loose, waiting.
We have all seen them before. Doubt, Anger and Deceit. Doubt can fool you. Anger can cause you and others harm. But Deceit is the worst of all. It is written “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?”. Faith overcomes doubt. Patience conquers anger. A deceitful heart can ruin you. But what can heal the heart? They say love conquers all. I believe that is true. But a little bit of forgiveness goes a long way to heal a deceitful heart. Love can’t fully work its wonders until we forgive. Watch out for those Three Marshketeers. We have their pictures on Wanted Posters now so you can recognize them. Be Blessed. Harry
Red Sky in Morning, Sailor take warning!
A shadow of doubt appears on the marsh.
An angry cloud also appears!
Don't be deceived by innocent looks.
Three feathered fiends appear!
An unlikely trio, they are the Three Marshketeers!, Tito the Tricolored Heron, Jose the Stilted Sandpiper and Enrico the Snowy Egret. Beware!
An unsuspecting Grebe swims by. Tito strikes up a conversation.
Enrico attacks !
The Grebe dives and escapes with his feathers, barely. But Enrico has done his dastardly deed.
The long beak of the law appears. Sheriff Ibis and his posse round up the Three Marshketeers and get their mugshots taken.
Enrico makes a dash for freedom! Tito flies off in the confusion and Jose sneaks out the back unnoticed.
Wanted! Tito the Tricolored Heron. Crime: DOUBT
Wanted! Enrico the Snowy Egret. Crime: ANGER
Wanted! Jose the Stilted Sandpiper. Crime: DECEIPT