Willie Wagtail
The Willie Wagtail has the sweetest call but when agitated, the chitter chatter is intense and no mistaking the mood. It makes its presence known in one way or the other. So it is not surprising, in some indigenous cultures, the Willie Wagtail is considered to eavesdrop and if one talks ill of those who have passed, the Willie Wagtail will pass on the gossip to them. It is an interesting concept because where there are people, the fearless tiny dynamite of a bird, is omnipresent and a powerful deterrent for those who believe in the symbolism of this bird.
We have all come across people like this in the work place. Those who come across as colleagues but when there is a restructure, the workplace becomes messy and with those most vulnerable to losing their position, being closest to the ear of management.
Being sick for several weeks with a lingering low grade chest infection I’ve been home for a few weeks and with time to reflect leisurely in the mornings. My reflections took me back to two significant office place scenarios and I recalled them, initially, with some sadness and then a feeling of elation.
I lost my position (but not job) when newly single. With two little children in childcare, it meant two hours of my day wasted in travel, extra expense for petrol and longer hours in childcare against a background of lowered salary. It was a nightmare time of stress and multiple demands and the lady who did not have children got a job closer to her home. It all seemed so unfair. But looking back, had that not happened, I would be working in an administrative job, nine to five, and wondering was there more to life. That scenario propelled me into higher studies and a significant career change.
The second was a job I had for over a decade. I woke each morning with a sense of adventure and looked forward to each day. Apparently, I lost it to a technicality and without a doubt, the whispering of a colleague in management’s ear. I didn’t get time to regret it because the very next day I got a better paying job with conditions beyond what I had hoped for. I would never had thought of accepting this job because why go to the unknown if you are happy doing what you were doing.
Yesterday was the first day I felt well and I realised how happy I am, where I am in life, and largely due to people who thought they got a better deal. Little do they know!
During my morning reflection it occurred to me, blessings in life come in disguise. So, I thought I’d whisper this in your ear.
Until next time
As always
a dawn bird
Poised on the grassy bank.
Or feeding
The blues shimmer into indigo and purple when they move.
They are usually shy but also protective. Their warning call is a fearsome screech.
This was a rare sighting of a chick this spring.
I woke this morning in cold and frosty Narrogin. It was a challenge to get out of bed but I could not help but feel so blessed.
The sunrise was magnificent over the township. Snuggled deep under covers, I felt I was the only one watching the sun emerge.
I stayed warm in bed, until past sunrise. I knew it was too cold, even for birds.
I then set off to Foxes Lair, took a deep breath while taking off my sunglasses and settled down to the big experience of the ‘here and now’.
I was there with the usual early morning company.
It was interesting to see the change of seasons reflected in nature. The bush is just starting to burst into colour, with striking fronds of flowers.
A little pink, too, here and there.
And, tiny flowers of ground cover.
The dryandra, beautiful but prickly, everywhere.
The honey eaters love this plant. Bees, too, but they were not buzzing today. Perhaps, too cold this morning for them.
The kookaburra emerged from a hole in the tree. It started to chortle. It sounded like a kettle coming up to the boil, before it reached the crescendo that is so typical of its call.
And when it stopped, it looked straight down at me!
Not far away from my car, was a Western Grey kangaroo and joey. Aren’t they perfect in the bush!
These looked different to the ones in Esperance.
The eyes, large and luminous.
Was that curiosity or a ‘don’t mess with me’ look? This one was huge, the stance looked threatening.
With another joey, much paler than the other one, they were eight in the mob. They stared at me in silence. Oh! I wished my heart didn’t beat so loud!
She saw colours more vibrant
than any painting in a gallery.
And when colours were muted
she found, they still told a story.
She searched for the Cape Barren Geese, at every trip to Esperance and found the giant bird, doing the impossible. Looking elegant.
Her eyes held a joey’s gaze while it snuggled deep within the mother’s pouch. It was something she only read about.
She walked with waders until they found the perfect palette for her to capture the moment.
She delighted in the ice cream pink wave of flowers, she found one day, in spring.
The rocks covered with barnacles.
And there are sea creatures, just as encrusted.
I always visit this slab of rock. It is jewel like with barnacles.
So enthralled by it for several visits, I failed to see one just beyond, and closer to the sea.
There is life in tiny crevices. The ibis knows this.
So does the heron that walks with intent. While the seagull photo bombs, also with intent.
Above the roar of waves, I can hear the crunch of footsteps on a shell encrusted beach.
And, amid the noise and beach clutter, the tiny sand plover takes a moment to stand still.
“I leave this by your ear for when you wake,
The footfall of blue dragonflies, on a lily carpet”
I am home now. The rainbow lorikeets are in the tree, screeching. The beautiful sounds of the currawong, echoing. The flapping sounds of big winged birds as they head for the lake, above me. The musical fluted call of the Willie Wagtail, outside my window.
I hear them with my eyes closed.
The big winged raptors in the trees.
The jacana. Oh! what big feet for a delicate, elegant bird!
The white faced heron, silent and poised.
Breathe in. Breathe out. My senses now acute.
There is someone having breakfast above me. I move my lens away from the remnants cast aside carelessly.
On the other side, the rhythmic thump on dry leaves tells me there’s a grey kangaroo in there. Somewhere.
I close my eyes. I hear the sea in the Marri tree tops. This, in deep Wheatbelt country.
The tops are crowned with flowers, with some blossoms hanging low, like fruit of the vine.
And, that’s when I saw her. She looked bewildered at my presence.
But not as bewildered as me, to find a shiny bauble in this bush country.
Breathtaking!
He steadied himself, then walked down the stairs. His dreadlocks streaming behind him, like kelp.
He faced the ocean. This, Poseidon.
They are almost always in a flock or at least a pair or two. I’ve watched them for hours and have never observed conflict. They seem to know, there is plenty of food for all.
They go about their life, without a backward glance at raptors. They live mindfully, in the here and now.
They are curious about the new.
Stop long enough to look at the world around them.
They are relaxed, and focused, when they observe.
And, yes, these energetic, beautiful little birds do take time to rest.
As well as a mother knows her chick.
Birds often pair for life, each the beloved of the other.
Two walk as one. Well, almost.
Others huddle close together to appear as one … to large predatory raptors.
Have you seen dragonflies mate? In a word, violently. Finding a beloved, they end the battle, in heart-shaped unity.
On weekends, kayaks rest side by side signalling, the beloveds are nearby.
Yes, to be loved and beloved, is in our nature.
A Shared Space 
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