Jeff Darren Muse

Creekjoy

Featured in Dear Park Ranger: Essays on Manhood, Restlessness, and the Geography of Hope

An excerpt from “One Mighty Yank,” reflecting on my years leading backwaters ecotours on the Upper Mississippi River with Captain Eric:

“As the onboard naturalist, binoculars at the ready, I knew my job was more than passing out skulls and skins and hands-on props, and acting as the first mate for docking and passenger safety. I’d also been hired to laugh. To laugh at Eric’s jokes. I was his sidekick, to be sure, which I embraced because the Upper Miss had stolen my heart. Rivers do that, you know. They pull your wildest organ right out of your chest and infuse it with ten thousand creeks. Before long, herons and bluegills and mayflies start feeling like extended family. You learn where to spot an eagle on a snag or a muskrat shouldering the bank, and you’re thrilled when someone smiles alongside you like a toddler stalking her first frog. Watching wildlife feels good—it’s that simple. I’d see a pelican skimming a sandbar, and my spirit was bound to soar with it. I’d dip my net into soupy shallows, and grabbing my bucket was all that mattered. It brimmed, like me, with creekjoy.”

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