Small Miracles Abound

Spring explodes, filling me with awe and deep appreciation for the earth’s renewal. Despite the urge to dive into this burst of energy, I want to notice these changes. Capture moments of beauty, which leave me breathless.

On an early morning walk with my old black lab, I round the corner of an empty lot. The air is filled with bird chirps. Looking up into the arms of an aspen, its bare limbs glowing with the rising sun, I see several robins nestled in branches. Their breasts equally glow. I stand transfixed listening to their twill, amazed at the silver arms of the tree dotted with their plump red breasts. As tears stream down my face, I know the only way to capture such a perfect moment is in haiku.

And so I try

Spring light
a flock of robins
blaze silver branches

but that leaves out the song

robins trill
stir the aspens
red breasts ablaze

Should I hold onto this precious moment by taking a picture? Returning home, I grab my phone and retrace my steps. Of course, the robins are gone, and the scene is completely changed as the sun rises higher in the sky. I laugh at my urgency to capture something that presented itself in such a miraculous way. However, I am not entirely disappointed. Two crows land in a nearby alder tree. It’s nest building time.

I write:

Alder barks
scales and fractures
nests for crows

or perhaps

Two black crows
the snap of alder twigs
permeate

As I take a picture to hold this moment I feel like I cheated. It can be hard to stay present to beauty without looking through a lense.