Dark Clouds and Brambles

It seems as if spring is in hibernation these past few days, taken hostage by raw winds and steady rain. The sunshine I long for is oppressed by gray skies that never seem to break. My mood reflects the dreariness as I force myself out of bed each morning to start the day. I open my weary eyes and listen to raindrops hitting my window as I long for another 15 minutes of sleep that cannot be.


On days filled with sunshine, I spring out of bed, eager to start the work day and hope I can catch glimpses of nature during breaks. There are no signs of nature in downtown Worcester today, just colorful umbrellas buzzing by my window hiding faces of pedestrians seeking shelter from the drizzle. The Peregrines are hiding too and don't come out unless they have to find food. The only bird life I can see are house sparrows eating seed upon damp grass that turns greener each day.


Toward the end of the day, I glance out the window and resign myself to the fact that
the dark clouds are too much for me to venture outside and I think about what I will do when I get home. Lost in my feelings of pity, I daydream of spring and bird song. I am brought back to reality by an email that flashes across my screen. Sad News it says, my heart drops a bit as I open it and read with pain that a fellow co-worker of mine died last night of a heart attack. He had just emailed me yesterday and I sat there with a sense of overwhelming sadness and a sudden appreciation for life. He went home from work yesterday just as I did and now he is no longer on this earth. It certainly put things in perspective for me as I washed away my pity and mourned for my co-worker.

I left the office and decided to make a pit stop to the cemetery in Grafton. I needed to get away for a while with my camera and see life to escape the thoughts of death if only for a while. Despite the dreary skies, the sounds of blackbirds and grackles filled the wetlands which comforted me. I looked for the Pileated Woodpecker but he was nowhere around. Hmmmm, I thought. Perhaps they have abandoned their nest and moved somewhere else. Suddenly I heard his manic call and drumming and determined he was to the far right of the wetlands.

As I was walking by I saw some Wood Ducks far away in the waters. The Mandarin was nowhere to be found.

A Grackle perches itself on a rock in the middle of the water surveying the landscape.

I search for the woodpecker and realize he is in an area of the wetlands I have never seen before. I trudge through the brush determined to find him and get lost in a maze of brambles. The branches scratch my skin and I get down real low to pass by some of the wild growth that seems to never end. Finally I find a clearing and go toward it to escape the brush. There are dozens of birds in this hidden oasis singing away as they look for nesting material. I look at this area and am in awe of its beauty. There are more Wood Ducks here and a few Mallards as well. The Bluebirds I have been looking for are here and a tiny stream trickles where a Robin has stopped for a drink. I suppose it would make sense that the birds would be here as it appears that people don't come here much based upon the maze I had to go through. I sit on a stump for a while and reflect on life. After a while I venture home for dinner with my children and I realize I am very lucky indeed. Life is precious I think as I trudge through the brambles and back toward the gray clouds which I am suddenly grateful for. Yes life is indeed precious.