Driving up and down the mountain to our house, I forget what 2,000 feet of elevation really means. The way to know the land is to walk. When I look at a topographical map, I can situate myself in the larger environment. Imagine what it was like for the pioneers. They knew to follow rivers, … read more Lay of the land
Tag: bird
Attention to details
I’d put it off as long as I could, but today I had to face the file folders in my office. I hadn’t done a thorough sorting of office paperwork in maybe four years – not the superficial kind of sorting where you are only stuffing more paper into existing files and tossing the junk … read more Attention to details
The curious woodpecker
I was quietly enjoying my research this morning when a visitor came to my second-floor office window. It was a pileated woodpecker, clinging to the window frame as he peered in. He just sat there, looking at me, and I stared back. He wasn’t pecking, he just looked and looked. At me, at my office, around … read more The curious woodpecker
Three little phoebes
In the locker room yesterday, I found a 1981 penny. After I started this project, I came to believe that when someone who has died wants to send you a message, they put a penny in your path. I couldn’t remember who had died in 1981, so I had to look it up. Two names jumped … read more Three little phoebes