Nature and Wonder

I remember hiking in Vermont years ago and suddenly being surrounded by a magical sound-- liquid notes of gold, silver, and many other hues, flowing through the spruce trees all around me. I searched and searched until finally I spotted a tiny brown bird perched way atop the tallest spruce. As I watched, my neck nearly bent in two, he raised his little head, opened his beak, and poured forth his glorious tune.

I had no idea at the time what kind of bird I was observing, but I did some research and found out it was Winter Wren, one of my favorite woodland mistrels to this day. I heard one again a few weeks ago, this time as I painted at the Pawling Great Swamp, and was one again transfixed by this little creature's melody.

My purpose in starting this new blog, Melissa's Nature Notes, is to attempt to capture in words and pictures the wonder of nature as I experience it, in order to help others also experience it. Sometimes a sense of awe and wonder comes with something small but dramatic, like the song of the Winter Wren. Other times it is a new view or understanding of some fairly ordinary aspect of nature that is easily overlooked. And other times it might come with some unusual or less common situation, such as the 17-year cicadas that are humming and whirring until, in some places, their roar is loud enough to drown out most bird song.

I hope that readers of all ages find their sense of wonder growing as they share in my delight in the world around us, and I look forward to reading of your experiences with nature. Please feel free to comment and tell me what has awakened wonder in you today.