There are signs of spring all around me now; frivolous fragments of life emerging from the still cold soil. What a wonderful time of renewal it is here on the Cutoff.
Tom and I pulled up to the Dean Nature Sanctuary on Thursday afternoon. It is a new discovery of local conservation for me. Though it is along a road that I travel numerous times each week, I had no idea of its existence. Isn’t it an unexpected gift when we discover this gems in life?
Just as we were getting out the car, up from the pond arose a magnificent blueish white specimen; a great blue heron! He spread his expansive wings, swooping up and away, catching my breath and taking it with him.
This week has been full of such blue heron moments; from the first daffodils to open, to the slow budding of trees, and the exclamatory chorus of the spring peepers in the pond. I am awash in the glee of springtime.
Yesterday, while at the Morton Arboretum, I pulled into a glen that is usually blocked off. There were several photographers positioned with their tripods and professional cameras and binoculars. I slipped as quietly as I could out of the car, my small, abused Nikon in the palm of my hand, and gazed as the small, blue birds dipped and dived, disappeared and came forward again in their springtime flurry of activity. I smiled as the phrase “the bluebird of happiness” came to mind. A few paused on a branch, here or there, and I captured them, forever, in my mind.
The daffodils were just beginning their show. Even in their prelude, they are so splendid I feel my heart applaud.
I headed toward Crawley Marsh, sure the peepers would be singing there. They were, but, it was a white egret that caught my eye. He came from the west and swooped and swirled in a figure eight; close then further then closer again as he danced on the wind above the water, suddenly stopping, a shiver in space, dropped straight down, breaking barely a wave, arising with his a fish in his mouth and soaring to wherever his table was set. There I stood, Yia Yia in her ancient lumber jacket, gasping “oh my”. An elderly couple scurried out of their sedan, wondering if it was the wood ducks I’d seen.
It’s amazing the conversations one has in blue heron moments. Have you had any lately?
Lifeonthecutoff's Blog 
My special moment these days is the abundance of dogwood trees on our property as well as on each side of the road to the house. There seem to be more trees than usual this year. From a distance through the budding trees they look like lace. That just may be my cataracts maturing though! Best Easter greetings to you.
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Oh, how I envy you those dogwoods, Marilyn. Your description of the trees resembling lace is so evocation of a long-gone time and place, but, of course, it isn’t as there you, cataracts or not, enjoying them just as they are. Enjoy the blossoms while they last, Marilyn, and best Easter wishes to you and yours (including the cats) as well.
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How beautifully written this post is, Penny. I can feel a renewal of wonder in you as you discover the blue heron moments – what a poetic phrase. And I love the ‘frivolous fragments of life emerging from the still cold soil.’ Exquisite.
This morning, your post is my blue heron moment. Thank you.
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Thank you so very much, Juliet. Your words are so generous and flattering. I will hold them dear as I finish my day here and will think of you there, on the other side of the world, savoring your own seasonal moments.
You are so very welcome.
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What a beautiful thought and title for a post! My blue heron moment was fresh bear scat in the meadow … does that count? 🙂
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My-oh-my YES Teresa; that certainly counts! You have certainly been have a few such moments with the bear scat and the big cat sighting. Such primal rewards after such a winter. Thank you.
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So glad to read this and see your glee at some true Springtime, Penny. It’s about dang time.
I always forget how big herons are. I had one such moment on Mardi Gras. It was 28 degrees at the beginning of my walk. We crossed Little Bayou Pierre, and Alice and I both looked over and saw a blue heron in the water. She smiled and said, “It’s a sign of good luck!” I quipped, “I hope it’s a sign I don’t freeze today.” Perhaps both were true.
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Wow! What an exciting encounter, Andra, and I would say it was a sign of good luck, for the day and the rest of your walk. Double luck. Who could ask for me.
It is amazing how large they are. The great blues are imposing birds, aren’t them?
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Such a beautiful springtime post, Penny. I love the way your spring moments are sometimes the same as mine – daffodils – and sometimes quite different – blue heron, egrets and peepers. Up here on the north coast of Scotland a real sign of spring is the blossoming of the gorse – big, yellow bushes of it spreading across the hillsides with its distinctive honey/coconut/pepper scent.
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I feel the same way, Perpetua. I would love to one day see the gorse in bloom. It always conjures up such an old, romantic image for me and your description of its fragrance is enticing. I think I would want to just sit nearby, close my eyes, and inhale spring.
Thank you.
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Dear Penny, this line of yours just delighted me: “I am awash in the glee of springtime.” There is a giddy glee to springtime. It’s like wasps getting “drunk” on fallen pears in the fall. The smell of spring–from the first freshly cut lawn to the waft of breeze that blows newness–always makes me realize anew how blessed my life is.
As to moments of drunken glee, I would say they came recently when i walked in the McCoy Park next to President Truman’s library and stopped on a short bridge that spanned a small creek. Light glinted the water as it leaped over the rocks and pass the brush left by a rain shower. Peace.
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I’m thrilled to have you say so, Dee. Springtime does remind us of our blessings and brings a scent to the air that only comes with the renewal of earth.
What an ethereal image you paint with your words as you write about the light and the rocks on the creek. I would love to someday cross that same bridge, Dee, and catch your words – and visit the Truman library. I have a mind, part of my “bucket list”, to visit all of the presidential libraries. I think they help us understand the person who sat behind the desk and give us a better glimpse into their presidency’s.
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Thank you for this beautiful and thought provoking post. My blue heron moment has been discovering a small, barely noticeable patch of bluebells in a secret nook of my garden. They definitely weren’t in evidence the previous two spring seasons we have lived here, so they have been quite the discovery, being one of my favourite flowers!
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What a delightful surprise that must have been; those bluebells just waiting for you to discover them once they decided to take up residence. We are reminded of how grand life can be at these moments, aren’t we? I’m so glad you shared them here with your words.
You are most welcome.
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I love your Blue Heron Moments. What a lovely day you had. I have a sudden desire to say Herons, and blue birds, and egrets……oh my! Signs of spring are all around us here too. I am enjoying every minute of it. We had one of those moments last week and I immediately thought, “I have to tell Penny about this.” Jim and I were sitting by the pond watching the fish feed and the frogs jump. The peepers were singing and the cardinals were flirting from tree to tree. We were just kind of mellow enjoying the whole scene just before sundown and an eagle swooped low over the pond and landed in a nearby tree where we watched him settle down for the night. I got up early in the morning to greet him, but he had already moved on.
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Ha! As long as the wicked witch isn’t around, you can say herons and blue birds and egrets . . . oh my, over and over again. Isn’t this a wonderful spring, now that it has sprung? I love your mellow moment, Janet, and glad that you not only shared it here, but, that you wanted to tell me. Thank you. What a spectacular moment! The grace and beauty and power of such a large bird. Tom heard or read that Illinois now has the largest population of eagles. I think most are hovering over your prairie. I wonder if he will come back. Let me know if he does.
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I love the term ‘blue heron moments’ … nature provides these small gifts of joy if we only stop long enough to accept them.. And it is even better when they are shared. Thanks for sharing yours.
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You are welcome, Sallie. You’ve had your share of these moments, with your travels and superb camera’s eye, which you so often share. You are right. Nature provides and we need to stop and enjoy them. Thank you, Sallie.
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