Thursday, January 30, 2014

Waiting and Watching: Northern Delaware, USA and Tembe Elephant Park, Durban, South Africa. Tuesday, January 28, 2014.

I’m sitting by a window waiting for something to happen this cold, cold morning and the birds don’t disappoint.  I watch a redheaded woodpecker zoom in and stab at the peanuts in the feeder, then see blackbirds careen through the woods below the house.  Tracks across the white reveal the proof that the deer have grazed by, stopping to uncover a cold patch of ivy.


Back at the computer, I watch a distant African scene and wait for something to happen.  A pond reflective of blue sky with cotton clouds is ringed by trees and leafy brush.   Its glassy surface is broken only by ripples of insects or fish.  And then I see it, the bipolar dappled head of a giraffe, nibbling, tearing and masticating green shrubby tops—unassuming, totally unaware of being observed by people far, far away.  I watch the animal biting, tearing, chewing, chewing.   Flicking ears and bobbling head in the tall vegetation doesn’t give away the truth of the neck the legs the sinews of evolution’s strange design hidden below.  The head dips again and unseen, the body gently lopes and swoons away leaving the stage set for another quiet interlude for anyone in the world willing to wait and watch.

No comments: