I remember the first Earth Day. We did a river clean up in my town. Seems like we've made very little progress as a species since then. Slow down and commune with Nature. If nothing else you'll glimpse a few moments of actually being part of something bigger and more generous than human nature.
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| 04-16-26-merganser02 pastel, ink |
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| 04-17-26-woodpecker pastel, ink, crayon |
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| 04-11-26-grackles ink |
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| 04-06-26-robins03 ink |
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| 04-06-26-cattails ink, pastel, crayon |
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| 2014: The river was over the stone walls (04-03-14-flood) |
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| 2016: it must have been raining (04-03-16-geese) |
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| 2017: The river was flooded again (04-03-17-island) |
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| 2023: Returning grackles (04-03-23-grackles) |
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| 2024: April is for grackles (04-03-24-grackle01) |
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| 2025: An early great blue heron (04-03-25-heron) |
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| 2026: only one mallard in a swiftly flowing river (04-03-26-duck) |
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| 03-22-26-turkeys |
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| 03-20-26-grackle |
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| 03-14-26-broadmoor01 |
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| 03-04-26-geese02 |
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| 03-25-26-island |
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| 03-03-26-geese02 |
I was surprised to see my first great blue heron of the year at the dam this morning. I do have a sketch of one flying over from February last year but they usually arrive and settle in late March or April. I hear that they spend the winter months near the coast where the water doesn't freeze so much.
The river has opened up a lot in the last week after a few days of warm temperatures. It stalked about and poked in the usual spots. It even hopped in, belly-deep to hunt in the old cattails. My guess is that it won't stay; the water's too high and that's where the best fishing is, just below the spillway. Now if the heron would tell my tulips and daffodils that it's safe to come out!
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| 03-13-26-heron01 |
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| 03-13-26-heron03 |
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| 04-19-21-heron01 |
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| 04-22-21-heron01 |
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| 08-14-15-mallow |
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| 07-28-21-mallow |
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| 09-06-25-mallows |
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| 10-01-25-mallows |
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| 10-16-25-mallow01 |
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| 10-20-25-mallow |
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| 02-18-26-mallow01 |
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| 02-18-26-mallow03 |
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| 02-18-26-mallow02 |
I am always enchanted by the pendulous seed balls of sycamore trees throughout the winter. They are Nature's Christmas ornaments. But with a big snow coming to Massachusetts later today, I wonder how many will fall to the ground weighted down by snow and ice. We shall see. Stay warm and vigilant good people!
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| 11-23-20-sycamore |
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| 01-07-22-sycamore |
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| 11-26-22-sycamore |
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| 01-28-23-sycamore |
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| 11-29-23-sycamore |
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| 01-22-26-sycamore |
We've had a "January Thaw" the past few days. I wish I could say the same about other parts of the country (and the world).
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| 01-11-26-puddle |
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| 01-12-26-river |
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| 04-27-20-puddle |
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| 02-28-25-puddle |
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| 01-01-26-goose02 oil pastel, watercolor, 11 x 17" |
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| 01-01-26-hawk charcoal, ink |
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| 01-01-26-branches charcoal |
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| 12-21-25-island |
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| 11-30-25-island |
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| 11-22-25-island |
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| 11-04-25-island |
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| 07-08-25-island |
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| 01-01-25-island |
