Discovering Beauty in Everyday Life

Oh, it's great to return to my home all clean, but Where is my dubious, shady patine? It's great to be back in my pond alright, but Where are the greens and the darks and the light? Where are the dabbles and dribbles and tears, Engraved in my gossamer over the years? I'll start over, I guess, and in no time at all I'll be dripping and messy and ready for fall! Our beautiful lady of the secret waters--returned after being scrubbed

It may seem as though the secret garden is an idyllic spot for calm and serenity, but even in paradise there is strife. Our brave photographer was sitting quietly among the berries and the fall lilies, watching Ounce an lots of friends playing in the Sparrow Bowl, when all at once, Red Cardinal came swooping down, scattering sparrows right and left!   Perhaps this swooping was innocent enough, but our brave photographer was so stunned by the chaos that Ounce was entirely forgotten!  Ounce  was furious, and a furious, wet sparrow is a dangerous thing.  Ounce dive-bombed a couple of times and practically drown trying to save the sanctity of the sparrow bowl.  Amazingly, as stunned as our brave photographer was, the footage was still in the cloud! Conservancy Garden, October 2016, from daylight into evening Central Park

Mourning Dove rests at evening in the Secret Garden sparrow pool Mourning Dove in Secret Garden

 Ounce is playing in his favorite water bowl of all time, the Secret Garden Burnett fountain. Granted, sometimes Ounce travels near to large bodies of water, but really the preference is for small, contained spaces with a few close friends. Despite an argument now and then (especially with larger birds: Ounce is a little Alpha), Ounce loves having friends over.

For months now, Ounce has been trying his best to live in the city. The new light poles with their crossbars here in New York proved too seductive for even our Ounce! Building a nice nest inside a street pipe was irresistible: new, highrise, amenities -- but the noise! Horns, Traffic, and the Pigeons! It was just too much. Well, Ounce is finally back in the park, but it's winter. You know how Ounce is with water...it's impossible to stay away for long. The other day we walked a little too close to Ounce's favorite sculpture swimming bowl. How disappointing, and after an entire summer of city life. Of course it's winter, and although the elements provide a little water sometimes, even gossamer metal is cold this time of year.