Reub's journey

21 April 2016

Hope is the thing with feathers

When John came home from work today he said he had just seen something amazing: a pileated woodpecker diving before him, just yards before he turned into the driveway.

John James Audobon, Plate #111 Birds of America

Woody Woodpecker was pileated, quite special, and we're glad to welcome his species to the neighborhood.



I love birds, but hardly know anything about them, even though I regularly feed them, hear them, see them, and find them dead. Next week this time I will be in the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge with a group of 16 birders, and so I should soon know more.



Coincidentally I have two photos in a local art and poetry exhibit, only there because the curator is a friend and thought to invite me. The exhibit is inspired by Emily Dickinson's poem #314. She did not title her poems.


Dickinson's first line "Hope is the thing with feathers" is the focus of the art and poetry of this show.


The poem, and a few more photos:


Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,



And sings the tune without the words,
And never stops at all,



And sweetest in the gale is heard;
And sore must be the storm




That could abash the little bird
That kept so many warm.



I've heard it in the chillest land
And on the strangest sea;




Yet, never, in extremity,
It asked a crumb of me.




34 comments:

  1. Welcome to your pileated woodpeckers. I love this blog and Emily Dickinson's poem. Have fun at the Wildlife Refuge and Happy Earth Day!

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    1. Happy Earth Day to you too, Linda! You do soooo much with the Green Party in Canada and I am in awe of you.

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  2. love your photos - very stunning b&w. i've been thrilled to have a pileated pair here the last couple of years. love them! and last year i saw my first redheaded woodpecker here since i've been in texas 31 yrs. :)

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    1. Your pond must attract a wonderful assortment of birds, Theresa.

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  3. One of the things I love best about this time of year is waking up to bird songs.I don't have anything more exotic than sparrows, robins, chickadees and crows, but all of their songs are so full of life and hope. Mom loved birds so I like to think maybe that's something I got from her. I think your birding adventure would appeal to me! I should look into something like that. Have a great time - I expect more pictures!!

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    1. Don't they sound the best this time of year? The robins are so loud!

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  4. Cool to have those fine photos displayed. Nice work on this post interweaving photos with the poem.

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  5. are any of these your photos in the show? I've seen a pileated woodpecker here from time to time. they are magnificent birds.

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    1. Yes, the 3 and 4th pics, taken of a crow at her funeral in our front yard.

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  6. Never seen a piliated, I've heard them. You would like "The Grail Bird" a book about the search for the Ivory Billed Woodpecker, thought to be extinct, but claimed to have been spotted in the La. swamps.

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    1. That's a book I've thought about reading, so now maybe I will. I'm learning to appreciate nonfiction these days.

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  7. We have one pileated woodpecker visit a few years ago and so hoped that more would come. However he must not have given us a good review because we never saw anymore.

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    1. Haha, easy come, easy go! You must not have enough diseased trees filled with bugs.

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  8. Lovely collection of photos and wonderful poem!

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  9. I memorized that poem. Here in downtown Eugene, we’ve seen turkeys in our backyard, an occasional sapsucker, woodpecker, king fisher, quite a few blue herons, an occasional green heron, and all manner of ducks. There are also the little long-legged birds that walk more than they fly, but I can’t remember what they are.

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    1. One skill that I wish I possessed is the ability to memorize poems.

      I was at somebody's house yesterday where they have a goldfish pond in the back yard, and a kingfisher sometimes visits for a snack. I suppose if I spent more time near the river I would have a better chance of seeing kingfishers.

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    2. I live on the Amazon (creek turned drainage canal), and I've even seen river otters here.

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    3. P.S. I miss the cardinals that we had in Mississippi, and the hummingbirds down there were a lot more prettier than here, but I think I see more of variety of birds here thanks to living near water.

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    4. Lucky you! I only recently found out that hummingbirds are limited to the western hemisphere. We've been getting some beautiful rufous hummers at our feeder this week.

      The thing I miss about living in the deep South is the presence of fireflies. I do really miss them.

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  10. Hello, wonderful post and images. I love the poem, very pretty. Enjoy your visit to the wildlife refuge. I hope you post about your visit. Happy Friday, enjoy your weekend!

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    1. Thanks Eileen. I hope to post about it. Gosh everybody knows where Malheur these days, after the infamous occupation.

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  11. We have a pileated woodpecker who nests near here, but he/she/they are shy and heard more than seen. That sounds like a terrific place to go birding and am certainly jealous!

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    1. They are pretty shy, but there's no mistaking them for another bird if you do see one. And those big cavities that they create are so distinct. I think you live in a very good place to see birds, with water nearby and lots of vegetation.

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  12. Your photography is beautiful, skillful and sensitive. I'd love to see more of it on display in Corvallis! Best wishes, Julia

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    1. Thanks Julia. :) Thank you for giving me this opportunity.

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  13. I'm fascinated by woodpeckers, having never seen one. Your photos are lovely. I particularly like the bed of feathers.

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    1. WHAT? They don't have woodpeckers in NZ? I didn't know this. Please come visit and we will do an all-woodpecker tour.

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    2. "WHAT? They don't have woodpeckers in NZ?"

      They also don't have hummingbirds in Australia, so I suppose that is true in NZ also.

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    3. Right. I wonder what creature gets to eat the bugs in dead trees?

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    4. Large poisonous snakes, probably. They seem to have a lot of those.

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  14. This post makes me wish I was in OR and we were having tea prior to a long hike in the woods! Maybe next summer?

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  15. Please, yes! You're coming in 2017?

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