A Spark
I learned a term today:
a spark bird,
how an intense experience with one bird,
one species,
can spark a flame inside
that keeps on burning
and leads one out the window,
into forest and mountain and coast
in search of other birds
whose unique beauty
and unique sense of self
keep that first spark bright:
a nuthatch outside the classroom window
pulls a middle schooler out to it,
and the boy is hooked,
a saw-whet owl reveals itself
and sparks another young boy,
a warbler along a New England path
still thrills from childhood,
all the birding itself
a gateway to get one out into the world
where beauty evolves with every moment.
by Henry H. Walker
January 27, ‘21
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