Final Post ... for the semester

Darling buds of May April

I’ve grown attached to this pond (and its neighbor to the north) over the course of this semester. I might not be required to come, watch and listen any longer, but I know I’ll continue to visit. All the plants and creatures that were dormant all winter are only starting to wake up and bloom or swim. I don’t want to miss the action.

The blogging assignment has been a gift. Each spring I watch for the baby geese when I run or walk through the park. Aside from that I never paid much attention to the geese, except to carefully step over the mess they leave on the paths. Over the past winter, my curiosity about the geese has grown into a curiosity about the other birds I share this city with. I listen now, and wonder how long it takes a person to learn to distinguish the different chirps. I watch them watch me, their heads tilted to the side as if compensating for a sore neck. Every day when I walk Mucho, I see two birds—I think they’re female robins—feeding in the grass at the church down the street. They move so quickly sometimes the worms or insects they pick up fly out of their beaks, so they have to start the hunting and pecking all over again. It looks comical. Is there some evolutionary reason or adaptation that caused this behavior? Is it just me making them nervous? I’m more inspired to do a little research, see if I can answer these questions after taking this class.

I used to tease Stella and tell her I was president of the science club in my high school. Because my lack of scientific knowledge is a joke. I barely passed. I wasn’t interested. Approaching biology, and skimming a few other science disciplines, through literature changed this apathy. I want to know more now. And I’m slowly becoming more comfortable writing about nature, what it means to me and what it might mean for my fellow city dwellers.

I came into the class not knowing much about what nature writing is and what it can be. I’ve fallen in love with the genre. I still find some pieces too meditative and lacking human presence, but we read a lot that was full of life and full of surprise. I’ve been inspired by Jenny Price and her look at the Los Angeles River, Lisa Couturier’s close looks at nature in the city, and Terry Tempest William’s thoughtful writing about women and wildlife, particularly birds.