Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
A black-crowned heron is standing on the rocks,
her wings and plume folded close to her body.
She’s gazing down at the water,
her beautiful eyes catching light from its surface.
She doesn’t move.
She barely seems to breathe;
and I hide behind a tree
barely breathing myself, to see her.
It is a gift to find her here,
in daylight, waiting patiently for fish to come.
resting, trusting her skill
and trusting the earth to provide
in its own good time.
Wake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks for another day of loving.
Khalil Gibran
It’s hard to describe how lucky I felt to walk just a few blocks from home and find this beautiful night heron just standing by the water patiently watching. The rocks where she was standing are below the level of the concrete path between the water and the buildings near the marina. There is a short wall above the rocks. It would have been easy not to see her there, below me and as still as she was, but I was actively looking. It was unusual, but not unheard of to see a night heron in daylight. I was very careful not to disturb her. Her absolute stillness made it so much easier to take clear pictures. What a magical experience. (If you want to know more about black-crowned night herons, click here.)
Hope you have a wonderful weekend. Thank you so much for being here. See you next week.
The first night heron I ever saw was this yellow crowned night heron, in February 2022. I was hoping to see the moon rise over the ocean, but it was a cloudy night. When I walked back home through the park - I saw movement out of the corner of my eye. I didn’t know what kind of bird it was when I took the picture. It’s grainy; the only light source was a park lamppost; but I still love this. Just the two of us, walking in the dark.
