Slice of Life Tuesday: Gratiku Day Two

 

There haven't been as many birds in my yard lately -- at least that's how it seems to me. I thought maybe it was the time of year: nothing particularly in bloom or fruiting right now. But when I look back at last year's checklists from this time, there were more birds in this same season. 

But yesterday morning I got a surprise: a Black-and-white Warbler. It wasn't my first of the year; I know they are here. But they tend to show themselves a lot less frequently than the American Redstarts that are my main migrant warblers. It lifted my heart to look through my binoculars and see this lovely, delicate bird. It always reminds me of cookies and cream ice cream, the white so creamy, the black so broken up into bits, like the stracciatella gelato we used to eat at Fior di Latte in better times. 

 

It's one of my favorites because it's so unmistakable. The other warblers are hard to identify, hard to tell apart. This one doesn't look like anything else, just itself. I didn't do anything to make it appear; it was a pure gift. 

Black-and-white Warbler:
Other things aren’t black and white
But you always are.

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. 

 

Check out other people's slices here.