Last weekend I had a nature experience that really felt like a gift. I’m going to attempt to write a little something about it although sometimes it feels like words can only scrape the surface of an experience like this. Some things are just for the soul and cannot be captured. But I can’t help at least having a go.
I met a fellow nature-loving friend for a walk on Otmoor. After we’d been walking for a while we sat on a bench and our eyes met with what we initially thought was a large flock of starlings rolling like a black wave across the sky. So synchronized were their movements, it was impossible to see individual birds. They performed as one, their every move timed to perfection in this beautiful winter dance.
The sky was glowing with every shade of the rainbow and with each slight turn of the head a whole new backdrop revealed itself, each one even more dramatic than the last. Behind us the sun glowed pink and orange; there was half an hour left before the horizon swallowed it up.
As the flock of birds we were watching flew closer, it became clear that these were not starlings at all. As they changed direction they displayed flashes of white and gold and we realized that they were golden plover. And all of a sudden, as they caught the sunlight, they transformed into tiny golden balls of light. Clouds of shimmering gold danced across the sky in front of us and the sight was so mesmerizing that it literally took my breath away.
As the golden light swept across the ever-changing sky and new deeper, brighter, softer versions of itself were revealed it felt like a continual expression of transformation. Each image of perfect beauty slipped effortlessly into the next, leaving us no choice but to marvel open-mouthed at this wondrous expression of change.
As we watched the golden plover perform their majestic evening dance, a soft whisper of wings lifted our eyes and a small flock of starlings darted through the air above us with a sense of urgency. They were clearly late for the party!
Flock after flock flew over our heads to join in and created their own display in this theatrical scene. And then the geese joined in; long out-stretched necks, squawking as they flew in perfect V formations against the setting sun.
And the water reflected all this beauty right back. As it gave, so it instantly received. A perfect reflection. We stayed awe-struck and silent until the sun set and slowly but surely the artists dispersed to their beds. And in the dusky light a hare lolloped through the shallow water in front of us as if to draw the curtain on a performance so beautiful and heart-warming that I know I will never forget it.
