Thursday, October 8, 2009

Ah-ha Moment

Sometimes I get the feeling that I am in the right place at the right time..two of those ah-ha moments have happened to me recently.

The first one was back in July at Lefty's, along the river in town. I was trying to photograph an Oriole when all of a sudden out of nowhere a bird landed on my arm, his feathers brushed my arm as he swooped in for a landing. He just sat on my arm, I looked at him, he looked at me, we made eye contact..he flew off onto a lawn swing and I took his photograph. Then he flew away. It was strange, I felt as though I had been kissed by a bird. Much later in the summer a comment at the Pow Wow about the possibility of a spirit bird..got me to thinking..had I already encountered a spirit bird? It is a good thing that I didn't scream like a girl and scare that bird half to death. A long time ago we had parakeets and a cockatiel so flying birds don't scare me. If it was a spirit bird..who was it? Maybe it was Charlie, whatever, just thinking about Charlie makes me smile.

Ah -ha number two was yesterday. Chance and I were bored stiff, it was the seventh day of cold spitting rain..we headed out to scowl at the rain and do a little stop the rain dance. We just drove, picking gravel roads, where there is little or no traffic. We have things to check on, the patch of Milkweed in a nearby ditch, I want to get a few seeds before it is mowed down..I am too late, the mower guy has already been busy with his big honking ditch mower, I hate that guy, he obliterates all the photogenic dried seed heads that will soon be covered with frost. We have to check the river, the water level is slowly coming up with all the rain. We drive aimlessly after that..then all of a sudden we see a herd of deer. Oh boy, Chance is primed to bark, they are on his side of the car, there is no way I can get a photo, it was a mass of white tails in the air as they headed for the safety of the woods. Well that was fun! Right or straight..which way to go?? Sometimes you pick the correct way, sometimes you don't. Do you ever wonder what would have happened if you had gone straight ahead? I turned right..luckily for me that is where the ah- ha moment unfolded.
( Doncha just love the way I can drag out a tale?) Okay, exactly how many horses does Joe have? ( Violet never really knows for sure. ) I love to watch the horses kick up their heals and run, imagining that I am riding bareback, flying along, the wind in my hair, the smell of wet horse filling my nostrils, the earth moving faster and faster beneath the valiant steeds hoofs..OKay..enough daydreaming.. the horses came running.

See they are happy to see us!


What happens next is magical, like something out of the beginning of the old western "Bonanza" where the horses and the riders come running and line up perfectly.

Not just a few either..and there are no riders.. I counted fifteen, but it was a quick count, the photos only show fourteen. Then I felt bad, I can't even share the photos with Joe, cause then Violet will have proof he has more than just a couple of horses. Chance and I enjoyed the horses for quite some time, finally we drove on..content with our ah-ha moment:)

19 comments:

Emma Rose said...

I was attacked by a bird many years ago so I definitely would have screamed if one landed on my arm :) The horses are all beautiful. How cool that they would just line up like that. I clicked on Charlie's story and it was hysterical! You are such a good writer Far Side :)

Emma sends kisses for Chance.

RURAL said...

Those moments, those ah-ha moments, they are memories in the making, ones that you actually get to experience, and enjoy during the making.

Not just afterwards when we pull them from the memory bank, shake them out, and give them a good airing. You are very fortunate.

Beautiful post.

Jen

DayPhoto said...

What a lovely post! You are a good writer! I can see everything you write about and the photos add the extra oooph!

Linda
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com

LadyFi said...

Two glorious moments - a bird spirit and horses all lined up in a row. Lucky you!

Andrea said...

Great photos, and a great story! I love to take photos of birds; just wish I had time to get out there, and maybe a bigger lens. Do you have a super telephoto?

Anonymous said...

Wonderful moments to share Connie! The photos of the horses are just magical.

Rae said...

Those are some of the neatest horse photos I have ever seen and a great story.

Unknown said...

Great story!

Pamela said...

I could hear the music - beautiful horse.
And the red-breasted nuthatch is gorgeous, too. Ilove their tiney little beep beep beep.(:

Pamela said...

ps. wonder if someone had been feeding the little one by hand. I've heard that people do that. But the ones I've seen just dart in and out with such timidity that I've always wondered how. You must be a bird whisperer.

Anonymous said...

I LOVE the way you drag out a tale!!

Gail said...

Great shots! I thought Bonanza just before you said it!

And they did all that just for you.

JEWEL said...

I think it's great that you are looking for special moments. So many people are to busy to take time to even notice them.

Leah said...

Far Side - the "Appy" Ah-Ha Moment is wonderful -- a number of them are appaloosas! I've seen in the paper that ol' Joe has a number of appaloosas for sale - maybe they are trained as well as these (no riders!) Perfect lawn ornaments!

Far Side of Fifty said...

Thanks everyone for your comments!
Gail P, I just have a not too fancy Canon Powershot SX110 IS it does have an optical zoom and a digital zoom.. I rarely use the digital zoom..the photos get to fuzzy. Photographing any kind of animal takes patience, you just have to keep trying! Birds are especially difficult:)
Growing Up, I could have had a "Appy" Ah Ha moment.. I had no idea what kind of horses he has, they all look a little short and stocky..but friendly! :)

L. D. said...

That is so amazing. It makes you wonder how that they could of lined up so well, as horses usually have dominate one or two, and others are caretakers, so they line up by their individual roles. That is really cool. I am sorry you couldn't take the deer, would have loved seeing that too.

Liz in PA said...

OH HAPPY DAY! I think you and CHANCE must be
very lucky to have observed such marvels of nature!
I, too, think it is extremely lucky to be the benefactor of PICTURE PURFECT NATURE'S PARADISE, no matter what or where it happens.
And your camera was just where you needed it too!

Lanny said...

Nice share! I find our horses to be big hams. They love to see me with a camera, my buckskin loves the coy pose.

What a cool thing to have a bird land on your arm. My girls feed our wild birds out of their hand but I don't think we have had any just randomly land on us.

The Retired One said...

How cool was that? Both of the experiences!
Last summer I had a hummingbird fly right in front of my face and linger in mid air, giving me eye contact. For MINUTES! I just froze, staring into his eyes and he in mine. It was magical. Then, he flew off and landed in a nearby apple tree.