Tag Archives: egret

Tiny Letters and Egrets

While I have continued my daily writing and posting, I haven’t been posting in this space. Today seems like the day to give a peek in to what I’ve been up to. After a month of daily slice of life posting and a month of daily poems in honor or National Poetry month, in May and June I shifted to writing daily #smallpoems (thanks for the inspiration Georgia Heard!) to accompany my daily photo post on Instagram. For July, again inspired by Georgia Heard, I am writing #tinyletters also inspired by my photography and posted on Instagram.

Here is the one I wrote today in response to an egret sighting on my daily walk.

Dear Egret,

We’re both drawn to the shoreline: you to eat, me to drink in the wonders of the sea. I know when I see you that this is my lucky day. And lucky I am, day after day after day.

Neither of us is gregarious by nature, enjoying solitude and blue skies. A space for listening to the roar of ocean waves and my own thoughts far from the noise and chaos of the internet and politics.

You are a whisper of grace and natural beauty, wings that lift you and lift me above the fray. A respite, a pause, a moment of stillness.

So I can breathe and the re-enter the world with renewed strength and resolve.

Thanks for being my lucky charm.

#tinyletters #egret #luck #solitude #respite #recharge

What tiny letters might you write? Who would you send them to? Who or what needs a letter from you during the month of July?

Where I’m From: NPM25 Day 6

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Where I’m from poems are tried and true in the writing project circles where I spend my time. So when Stacey at Verselove shared Where I’m From, Again as today’s post, it felt familiar.

I decided to try a very short form today…a Haiku. Can I express some aspect of where I am from in just 17 syllables? Here goes…

Where I’m From: Moonlight Beach version

walking sandy shores

osprey soar, egrets wait — breathe

in sea, breathe out home.

Morning Treasure

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A treasure hunt is the perfect way to start a day! That’s how I felt when I read the Open Write prompt today on Ethical ELA. I took a little different pathway on my treasure hunt and let my walk this morning uncover the treasure.

Morning Treasure
Morning light slanting
to warm my shoulder
making a mirror of wet sand
reflections in full color
Water pulls back
revealing rocky flower fields
anemones clustered
nature’s jewels
Blue upon blue upon blue
color like breath
oxygenating my blood
morning treasure
@kd0602

Sniff In: NPM22 Day 23

Time to Apologize: NPM #21

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Today we learned about William Carlos Williams and studied his iconic poem: This is Just to Say. Students were quite excited about the idea–especially when I encouraged them to be playful. They apologized to their dogs, to chairs, to brothers, and more.

Me…my apology poem was dedicated to my feathered friends: snowy egrets.

A Snowy Egret Apology

I have taken your photo

hundreds of times,

never asking your permission

You probably wish

I would leave you alone

or just admire

you with my eyes

from a distance

Forgive me

your bright yellow feet

and delicate as lace feathers

are too gorgeous to resist

®Douillard

Saturday Satisfactions: SOLC #27

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I figured a listicle would be in my future sometime during 31 consecutive days of writing for the Slice of Life Challenge. And today is the day. So the following is my short list of satisfactions from this Saturday in particular.

Sleeping in. Somehow my body hasn’t quite adjusted to the “spring forward” command from weeks ago. I keep wanting to go to bed early each night and then find myself awake before my alarm clock. Even with no alarm clock set today, I found myself awake before my usual 5:30am wake up time. But it was Saturday, so after scrolling through some news on my phone I cuddled back under the covers and went back to sleep for a while. It felt heavenly!
Breakfast…with love. Most days I grab a yogurt, sprinkle a few berries and some granola on top, and voila, that’s breakfast! But today my husband made french toast–not the toaster kind–the real kind dipped in an egg mixture and topped with powdered sugar and served with a side of bacon and fresh grapefruit. Definitely a Saturday Satisfaction!
An egret sighting on the low-tide beach. I love an egret sighting anytime. I didn’t think it was going to happen today. I was more than halfway back when I noticed an egret fly in for a snack. I picked my way across the slick reef, trying to get close enough for an interesting photo. It didn’t stay long…there were too many people exploring the tide pools today…but I did get this straight on shot!

The exuberance of young people. I love watching young people on the beach. I am reminded of the verve and energy that teens bring to life…which reminds me of the importance of diving in, following my own passions, and embracing each day as it comes.

Living close enough to have the beach be my daily happy place. While I don’t go quite every day, knowing that I can access the beach with a short drive is a gift. When our beaches closed last year during the pandemic, I was heartbroken. It was hard to stay away, hard to see the ocean from a distance but not with my feet on the sand, and hard to find joy in my replacement neighborhood walks. Each day I revel in the wonders of living near the sea–and try hard not to take it for granted.

What satisfactions would you list this Saturday?

An Egret Dance: SOLC #2

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I might be obsessed with photographing egrets.

On my regular beach walks it makes my day when I spot a sleek, white bird in the distance. Even from afar, I recognize their distinctive silhouette and their mostly solitary nature.

Lately I’ve walked the beach with my zoom lens in place. I love the ability to get close to these birds, even if I can’t quick get as physically near as I’d like.

But like anything I take photos of on a regular basis, if I’m not careful, I end up taking the same photo over and over again. So I’ve been trying a variety of angles, different lighting, straight on, head shot only… I’ve taken photos of reflections, of water drops creating concentric circles of movement, of bright yellow feet in isolation.

Over the weekend I caught three egrets hanging out together. They were searching the tide pools for tasty morsels, using their feet to stir up the sea life below the surface. The weather was beautiful, so lots of people were exploring the tidepools. As people got close, the birds would take flight, spreading their wings and lifting off for a short trip to the north.

I followed, creeping closer while trying not to soak my sneakers in the tidepool puddles. I snapped, and snapped, in search of an image different from the usual.

And this time, it seems like I caught a bit of an egret dance.

SOLC Day 26: It’s the Little Things

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The days feel long right now…and not in that endless summer kind of way. Being homebound means that each day feels a lot like the one before, experiencing little change in scenery. With the beaches, parks, and trails closed my walks involve treks around the neighborhood. I get my cardio exercise, but inspiration and scenic beauty are sorely limited. I’m enjoying the cool crispness of early morning walks, but I don’t find myself motivated to stop and pull out my camera to snap a photo or two.

Zoom meetings, student comments, lesson planning, emails to writing project colleagues, clearing that inbox that has building up all week…the hours vaporized and the knots in my back tightened (is there something called Zoom back?). Around 3:30 I noticed an email from a dad of one of my students…and much to my delight there was a short note…”A” wanted to send you this photo she took today. As I scrolled down the image emerged! An egret perched on a chain link fence overlooking the seashore.

I felt a surge of pure joy! I love the photo–and seeing the egret and the beach were a shot of nature that I have been missing since the beach closures earlier in the week. (I have been staying away–trying to do my part to keep the virus at bay.) And it was heartwarming to know my student knows me so well. After almost 2 weeks of remote learning, this student knew how to share some remote caring. She knew I would love this photo…and she is right! Thanks A…you made my day! It really is the little things that matter most.

SOLC Day 16: Appreciating Unexpected Gifts

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In this upside down world where nothing feels normal, a walk on the beach feels like a treat. Hearing that others in our state are getting directions to “shelter in place” makes me feel like my open air walks may be a thing of the past very soon. I worry about going stir-crazy with no outlet for exploring the natural world!

I did get my beach walk in today…an extra long one since rain is expected later tonight. But my real treat came later…in the most unexpected way.

If you’ve followed my blog or Instagram (@kd0602) you might know that I’m pretty obsessed with egrets and herons. I’ve written about them here and here and here. Now that both my husband and I are working from home, every invitation to go outside the house is a welcome one. So when he asked if I wanted to walk down the street to check the mail, I jumped at the chance. We headed out–the skies were gray and the wind was kicking up in advance of the storm forecasted for tonight–walking down the hill on the sidewalk in the neighborhood. And we saw it…that distinctive shape, pure white, landing on the deck of a neighbor’s house. A great egret. Perched on the deck wall, we had a perfect view from afar.

I never see egrets in my neighborhood, but like on the beach, I crept closer feeling lucky my phone was in my pocket and not in the house. When photographing birds I know to take many shots, increasing my odds of a good photo. As it took flight, I continued to press the shutter…

and then follow it as it landed across the street near the park and our mailboxes. Unlike the snowy egrets I see on my beach walks, the great egret does not have bright yellow feet. But it does have a yellow beak where the snowy’s beak is black.

It seems a bit strange to have an egret visitor in the neighborhood today, but what an unexpected gift it was! I love getting close enough to see the texture of the feathers, especially as they were ruffled by the wind. On days and weeks like these, I’m learning to appreciate the little things…like a neighborhood visit by an egret.

SOLC Day 8: When the Tide is Low…

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Springing ahead this morning meant the day was already shorter…and who needs a shorter Sunday? Luckily, the day was sunny and relatively warm…a perfect day to enjoy the negative tide promised this afternoon.

When the tide is low the sea pulls back and offers a wide walking beach. New geography is on display: exposed tide pools, unexpected sandbars, and slippery algae covered reefs.

Egrets feast, using their bright yellow feet to stir up tiny fish. As still as statues, they pose and wait…until the perfect moment arrives. And then…mealtime! The gentle sea breeze ruffles those pure white feathers, revealing the layers of texture. As I crouch low we come eye to eye…and understand that we are not in competition. The egret can hunt and I can take photos without disturbing one another.

Crabs scurry, hiding in the cracks and crevices of seaside rocks and hive like reef structures. Sensitive to the tiniest movement, I stand perfectly still and patiently watch until I get a glimpse of the sideways reach. A fist fight between two thumbnail sized green crabs suggests that territory may be in dispute.

Anemones comes in a variety of shapes, sizes and varieties. Some immersed in shallow pools, others exposed in the wet sand…all adapted for the harsh conditions of the tidal zone.

The beach is an ever-changing wonder that I explore endlessly. For me it is my gym, my photo studio, my meditation space, my therapist. And on days when the tide is low and my schedule is flexible, it is simply a playground filled with delight!