This poem by Wendell Berry was posted recently by a friend and it really resonated with me, especially during these very stressful and troubling times. It speaks volumes about the peace we can find in nature and of the comfort it can provide.
There’s nothing more that I can add to this beautiful poem, so here are a few of my wild things to enjoy vicariously…
Pied-billed Grebe and Great Blue Heron
American Bullfrog
Virginia Ctenucha Moth and Male Widow Skimmer Dragonfly
Cabbage White and Common Buckeye Butterflies
Carolina Wren
House Sparrow and Black-capped Chickadee
Eastern Phoebe and White-breasted Nuthatch
Male Monarch Butterfly
Red-legged Grasshopper, White-faced Meadowhawk Dragonfly, Familiar Bluet Damselfly and a Halloween Pennant Dragonfly
Cicada and a Purple Coneflower
Praying Mantis
Painted Lady Butterfly and Spotted Spreadwing Damselfly
My favorite time of day for going on a picture walk is early, early morning– just as the sun is coming up. It’s a quiet, peaceful time of day when the rest of the world is not yet awake and not yet making noise. It’s a time of day when it’s easier to hear the birds and easier to notice the movement of the grasses where a wiggling bug or bird might emerge.
One of my favorite early morning shots was this little chipmunk perched in a tree with an abundance of colorful flowers in the background.
Hibiscus and a Sumac branch
Monarch
Oftentimes, there’s a mist across the water that adds to the dreaminess of an early morning walk. If I’m lucky, I’ll catch a dragonfly or two laden with dew drops and not quite ready to fly, or a spider web sparkling in the sunlight. The morning sun has a way of making everything look fresher and brighter and more saturated. The problem is, the morning sun doesn’t last long and I always feel like I’m racing against it for a few good shots.
Familiar Bluet Damselfly on a dewy blade of grass
Early morning mist on the pond at the Wolf Lake State Fish Hatchery in Mattawan, Michigan
Barn Swallow
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
The race begins long before I leave the house. In truth, it starts the night before when I lay my clothes out in the guest room so that, come morning, I can get ready without waking up my better half. In order to win my race against the sun in these waning days of summer, I need to be out the door by 6:00 or 6:30 a.m., depending on how far I have to drive. If I leave later than I should have, then the race becomes literal!
I love finding the frogs when I’m out on a walk. Sometimes, it’s a bit like a Where’s Waldo challenge!
Great Blue Heron and a female MallardCarpenter Bee working a flower
Spider web laden with dew and an Eastern Kingbird
Once I arrive at my destination, the race continues– because I want to be everywhere at once before the sun is too high in the sky. If you’ve never been in a race against the sun, it’s hard to explain the urgency—or the delight, if you win!
Monarch
Calico Pennant Dragonfly and a Northern Rough-winged Swallow
(All of the pictures in this post were taken in the early morning sun.)