| More Geese |
| Sutter Buttes in the background |
| Verdant Trail |
The sandhill cranes had already made their way through, alas. But, oh my, so many others were there: mallards, white fronted ducks, cinnamon teal ducks (what beauties), ibus, white fresh water pelicans swooping overhead, blue herons and white herons, 2 great horned owls in trees about 30 feet apart, and a single bald eagle far off in the distance. He was just a speck in the sky, flying away from us, but through the telescope you could see his white tail feathers.
Jack rabbits were scampering across the fields, and we saw one deer by the side of the road.
I went with good friends, F & L, and F is an avid bird watcher who has traveled all over the world for business and then of course took time out for bird watching. He had all the right equipment for viewing.
And L was a great spotter -- she saw the owls and pointed them out -- they completely blended into the trees they were perched in. She also spotted other birds as we drove along the road - what a sharp eye. Even with my distance glasses on I missed them.
What a wonderful trip. With wonderful friends. It completely satisfied my need to get out into the wild. Ah....
| Heron |
| F & L |
Wild
Geese
You do not
have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
For a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting --
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.
~ Mary Oliver ~
You do not have to walk on your knees
For a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting --
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.
~ Mary Oliver ~