“Sometimes I think that the point of birdwatching is not the actual seeing of the birds, but the cultivation of patience. Of course, each time we set out, there’s a certain amount of expectation we’ll see something, maybe even a species we’ve never seen before, and that it will fill us with light. But even if we don’t see anything remarkable – and sometimes that happens – we come home filled with light anyway.”

― Lynn Thomson, Birding with Yeats: A Mother’s Memoir

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Birding Weekend

It was birding weekend, once again last Sunday! Thank god for small mercies.

We as a family had not stepped out for three weeks. 7 November, was our last birding jaunt. We were all at home all this while, quarantined, as I recovered from Covid.

The four of us – the DH, the 12-year-old, the 22 year-old and I stepped out on Sunday afternoon, a bright, clear sunny day; armed with our cameras, binoculars, a small picnic basket of tea and munchies, and of course our masks intact. It felt  liberating to drive away into the depths of city to the Basai Wetlands, a water treatment and recycling plant, for a bird-watching jaunt after a long hiatus. Harry Styles crooned to Watermelon-Sugar, as the ardent 12 year-old fan kept playing all his songs.

Birding in Basai

Winters of course have set in, in our part of the world. But the afternoon was warm and a gentle breeze blew amidst the tranquility of the wetlands.

We managed to spot the regulars – Moorhen, Cattle Egret, Little Grebes, Black Ibis, Pied Starlings, Pond Heron, Purple Heron, Grey Heron, Purple Swamp-hen, Cormorants, Stilts, Kites, White-Throated Kingfisher, Shrikes and a Grey Wagtail, diligently foraging for its snack amidst the lovely purple blooms of the Water Hyacinth.

The 22 year-old was also super excited, though she isn’t much of a avian fan. But she was quite chuffed to see so many species. 

We left Basai as the sun surreptitiously sank into the horizon, but not without having our evening cuppa and digging into the munchies. This had been a much needed family outing, after aeons. We all felt truly blessed to finally be able to do so.

As we drove into the concrete jungle, we saw a stunning full moon rising, in all its glory.

Was that a sign? 🙂

Love, Light and Laughter, my dear amigos!

Stay safe, stay wonderful. <3

Natasha

 

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Check out these wondrous #WordlessWednesday posts.

Arigato, Gracias, Shukriya, Multumesc, Danke to my amigos in blogosphere for sharing the #WW love with me.

1. Kenneth joins us with his wondrous furry and feathered friends from the wild.
2. Kenneth also joins with his early morning avian wonders and sky images. 
3. Tina shares Wild Cotton blooms and the dried version from Africa. 
4. Sandee shares an image of Lake Biel in stunning Switzerland.
5. Kathe takes us by a water body that show cases a bunch of aqautic wonders, turtles yes!
6. Xmas Dolly laughs with us and makes us laugh all the way.
7. Zina shares the serene Peace Lily blooms from her home in Romania.
8. Suzana takes us for a walk to the bountiful Drumul Taberei park.
9. Suzana also shows us the incredible Paltinu Dam , located on the valley of the Doftana river.
10. Diana takes us to the riverside that adorns a pretty bridge and is dotted with ducks. 
11. Steve is as always regales in tickling our funny bone. This time with jogging decisions.
12. Keith takes us for an afternoon walk to the beach by his home in UK.
13. Monika lights up the flame of hope and faith in our hearts with her endearing post. 
14. Vinitha shares a heart-warming image and poem, Could You Be Human. 
15. Shinjini, better known as Modern Gypsy shares the language of abstract art with her lovely paintings.
16. Archana clicks an image of a Ficus green, one which has me enamoured always. 
17. Betty shares the radiant colours of her garden from New Zealand.
18. Chandra is taking us by the riverside with a lovely piece by John O’Donohue, “Fluent,”

 

#WordlessWednesday #WednesdayWisdom

 

Here’s how you can join:

1. #WW is an alternate week linky party and goes live 1st and 3rd Wednesday of the month.
2. The next edition goes live on 15th December, 2020.
3. Post a picture/pictures on your blog. It could be from life’s wondrous or wicked moments. Plug in the lessons (#WednesdayWisdom) and humour too. Share your wanderlust moments, or simple random shots from your day that caught your fancy, or not!
4. Make your post as wordless, or wordy as you wish to.
5. There is now a linky widget below and you can drop in your links. 
6. Do add the badge to your post and a backlink to my post.
7. And make sure you connect with a fascinating bunch of bloggers from across the globe.

You can link up right up till Monday the 14th December, so you have ample time to hop in.

Get ready to be deliciously framed!

Have a fabulous #WW!

 

 

Linking up with a bunch of fantastic peeps from the blogosphere who host Wordless Wednesday :

Betty, Steve, Sue NC, Zina, Xmas Dolly, Sandee, Cathy, Tina

Also linking up with Trent  for his weekly Smiles and Skyley’s Skywatch Fridays