Hi, Folks,

If you’ve seen one snowy egret, have you seen ‘em all? I hope not, and hope you don’t mind seeing another one here, or another short poem about one of them by Mary Oliver.

Snowy Egret, by Mary Oliver

A late summer night and the snowy egret
has come again to the shallows in front of my house

As he has for forty years.
Don’t think he is a casual part of my life,

That white stroke in the dark.

Ms. Oliver may have been observing successive generations of snowy egrets in front of her house, because their life span is not known to exceed 17 years. But a white stroke of egret light and life, I think, can be memorable for forty.

Despite the easy stability of its stance, does this egret have only one leg? No, indeed. As is often the case with long-legged wading birds, the second leg of this egret is tucked up inside those beautiful feathers to keep it warm.

Here’s wishing you memories of nature as lasting and meaningful as Mary Oliver’s recollection of the snowy egret near her home.

Dave

Snowy Egret on Driftwood, American River Parkway ©David Dawson, 2020