A friend reminded me yesterday that he was following this photo blog series, since 2 July 2012, when I first posted a reflection in this blog spot.
I was surprised to be reminded of this experience. That gave me an opportunity to go back to have a glance of what was the main focus on my the reflections in the blog posts.
4563 blog posts from 2 July 2012 !
I feel that it was more than a coincidence when a pond Heron visited us in the garden at dusk yesterday. Its stroll in the lawn for about half an hour gave me an opportunity to take about five hundred photos, the largest number of photos I took of any one bird so far, since 1997!
It was because of the most interesting way it moved about in the lawn looking for its feed and finding insects in the grass. It moved slowly and purposefully and approached the insects cautiously and circumspectly. It missed a few as the insects moved away but caught some by intelligent traps.
This pond Heron seems to be familiar with our lawn, because it moved about with ease. The marshy fields below our cottage, beside the stream used to be the places where the water birds were regularly found. Now that the wet land is being used for a rubber plant nursery, the Herons come to our garden during the day, looking for shade and feed.
Looking back over the last 13 years, since Anna and I located in our cottage after completing our time in Pondicherry Institute of Medical Sciences, what stands out is the way we have been finding our way forward.
It was in June of 2012 Anna gifted me with this blogspot to start blogging. It gradually became a routine over the years to reflect and share experiences and insights.
In one sense, our story was also like that of this pond Heron, feeling displaced and looking for a new place, having lost its usual habitat.
Since we arrived here, we took time to feel connected with the local terrain. Now we feel connected with this place geographically, socially, relationally and occupationally.
The Heron finds its daily feed even when displaced with no wet land close by.
I was fascinated by its diligent and alert presence in the lawn that any cue of movement in the grass drew the heron towards that site, with slow motion movements and steady pace to avoid any signal to its prey. Even when it trapped its prey, the movement of the neck and opening the bills were slow to avoid being noticed. It was at its best with its slow and measured movements.
It was this message, that enthused me to take as many photos as possible, to observe the steps in the different movements of a Heron while catching its prey ! It was in no hurry! When the prey was faster to escape, the Heron moved in another direction for its prey. I did not see it chasing a prey that escaped.
What lesson to remember!
To so live that the pace is slow and steady with full attentiveness and readiness, anchored in hope!
It was alone but not impaired functionally by loneliness. It was on a dry land and needed tricks suited to catch insects in dry a place unlike the process it would follow in wet land to find its feed. It adapted with good outcome. Had it not been for the dusk setting in, it would have stayed on longer, having better outcome of trapping the prey with practice. Its adaptation to feed on insects in the dry land was one of its strengths!
Life is such an experience in adaptation to opportunities, challenges and stresses!
The post-retirement season is one phase in life when this gets tested ! Anna and I feel grateful of having been carried in this journey to adapt to retirement and geographical relocation!
M.C.Mathew (text and photo)
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