Moments in Nature

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Moments in Nature




<ol style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1" start="1"><li class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;">Joel and I hiking in Santiago. At the top, we sit, just the two of us, on rocks. Stare out at the sky. A bird in the distance. Circling closer. We turn to one another. “That’s a condor.” It is. A magical silence as we stand and watch in awe.



<ol style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1" start="2"><li class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;">One week in Ushuaia before my ship leaves for Antarctica. A week pass purchased for the trails in Tierra Del Fuego. A path along the water that crosses the border between Chile and Argentina. Pesos of each country left at the marker. Before I get there, on my shaded trail, an animal coming toward me. I slow my gait as he approaches. We greet each other tentatively, him circling me, sniffing, me, mouth agape, not fear, wonder. The grey wolf looks me in the eyes once before carrying on. I turn and watch as he disappears. The reason why I prefer to hike alone.




<ol style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1" start="3"><li class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;">The third day out in the zodiacs. The ship silhouetted in the sky behind us. A tour of the icebergs. We watch chinstrap penguins slide into the water, skuas fly overhead, a Weddell seal pass beneath the boat. But we are patient. Then, just in front of us, a blue whale surfaces. The ocean splashes in. It glides along with us, close enough to touch. Silence.



<ol style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1" start="4"><li class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;">Early morning weeding in my backyard. The kitty’s lounge in the already warm grass. Footsteps rustle the leaves on the ground. A deer jumps over the fence. Nudges the fallen apples with her nose. She has been here before.

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