In the morning as I type, a great blue heron quietly glides in and gently lands on the dock. The dock can be seen from the window, next to the computer, and is a place where ducks rest and herons fish.
The heron takes his time to arrive. There is a transition period between, gliding in, to actually "being" on the dock. Upon landing, he steps a bit to position himself properly, slightly flaps his wings, and preens his feathers to make sure that none of his feathers are ruffled. Then bobs his head several times with a rhythm that makes you want to swallow. Head bobbing on that long heron neck, is something that defines the essence of what a heron is. Next he surveys the surroundings, and slightly repositions himself. Finally he straightens his neck, and stands full. At this moment, he has arrived, and starts patiently staring into the pond for the next meal. All these movements look slightly awkward, but the heron does them in such an elegant way. It takes time to be majestic.
Cheers,
Make Good Pots,
~Craig
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4 comments:
Lovely image you describe, Craig. And a lovely pot as well. The image of the heron bobbing his head reminds me of a potter at his wheel, at one with the clay he is forming.
They glide down along the Amazon Creek drainage just a block from our house, so we see them pretty regularly as the bike/hike path follows the stream. Green heron arrive also, but with a less stately presence, being much smaller. All this and more we see on our morning walks in the city of Eugene, OR, well inside the city limits.
I see heron quite often here in Florida, but one of the most memorable times seeing them was at our lavender farm in California where they'd catch gophers by spearing them with their beak in winter; they'd wait very patiently till a gopher popped out of their tunnel hole, spear them, and flick them up in the air till they got them just right to swallow whole head down; amazing to see.
Michael-I hadn't thought of that.. but now that you mention it, it seems obvious. I've noticed that I never notice my head bobbing at the wheel.. but it is.
Hank..It would be wonderful to go for a walk with you, around your neighborhood. I believe that I would enjoy every second of it! I hope that someday that will happen.
Linda; I have only seen herons fish. I had no idea that they were into gophers. What a visual, their patience is astounding.
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