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NOTES ON NATURE<br />
On a Wing and a Prayer<br />
Spring mornings, I wake early with<br />
anticipation, eager to discover what<br />
wonderful new things might be revealed. I<br />
take tea, binoculars, and my journal to the<br />
outdoor sitting room and join the other early birds.<br />
Last year’s April 23 journal entry says: “Eastern<br />
towhee flashes into view and scratches among the<br />
violets around the bird feeder. He eclipses the newly<br />
arrived phoebe, fox sparrow, and yellow-rumped<br />
warblers I’m watching.”<br />
I remember now how I put down my mug and<br />
raised my binoculars to study his deep red eyes.<br />
His rufous sides are the perfect complement to the<br />
verdant ground cover.<br />
The towhee raises his black velvet-like crown<br />
at an interfering chipmunk who is not impressed.<br />
But I am smitten. I’m able to do a couple of quick<br />
sketches before he flies out of sight toward the edge<br />
of the woods.<br />
The eastern towhee spends winters in the<br />
southeastern states as far south as Florida. He may<br />
find a mate there or fly as far north as the Canadian<br />
44<br />
Seasons of West Hartford • SPRING 2017
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