Early this summer I was stopped by a train near a small town.  While I waited, I watched the field beside the road.  Suddenly a red-tailed hawk swooped down into the corn stubble and struggled with whatever it had landed on.  When it took off, it had a long black rat snake in its claws.  I’d been wanting to do a Red Tailed Hawk piece for a long time, but hadn’t had the right inspiration.  That encounter did the trick.  For those of you whose hearts go out to the snake, and not the bird, I feel you.  Just know, capturing a rat snake is a very dangerous endeavor for a hawk, and many times the snake wins.  The hawk has to get airborne before the snake can wrap around it and bind up its wings.  Let me also say that I had a nice 5 ft rat snake hanging around the studio door all summer.  He startled me at first, but he was pretty mellow and I grew to like seeing him.  I called him Steve.  Every time I passed him I said, Steve, whatever you do today, look out for those hawks.