Saturday, November 20, 2021

Gratiku Day Twenty

 

Today I'm thankful for this cheerful and active little bird, bouncing around my yard. I already wrote about this species some here, and explained that here in Haiti this island endemic is called the Katje, or four-eyes, because of the white specks on its head that look like an extra set of eyes. 


Photo Source: Birdfinding.info

 

I enjoyed watching several of these this morning. It was cloudy and 90 degrees, and I was stressed and using birding to distract myself from ... everything. It worked, and all the birds were beautiful, especially these lovely creatures that can be seen nowhere else in the world, only here on Hispaniola, home to 22 million people. I get to be one of those people. And I get to see Phaenicophilus palmarum.

 

Bright olive feathered
Bird seeks lizards, fruit, or bugs,
Extra eyes flashing


Birdtober? Gratiku? What's up with me and these made-up words and daily posting? Well, I've learned that a tiny little burst of creativity each day helps keep me going, stops me from being entirely fixated on the mess. That's why I post daily photos on Facebook. And that's why I'm doing these writing projects. This one is a daily haiku about something I'm thankful for. (A gratitude haiku - get it?) As long as the internet keeps working, I'm going to try to post one every day in November.

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