🐾 Maybe the reason I love animals so much, is because the only time they have broken my heart is when theirs has stopped beating.
Showing posts with label north coast. Show all posts
Showing posts with label north coast. Show all posts

Thursday 1 February 2018

Today


It has been 6 weeks since we sold our smallholding and Gauteng in moved down to the North Coast of KwaZulu Natal (South Africa) (ONLY 6 weeks??!! feels like a life-time!) and it has taken me all this while to find my feet, gather my thoughts and feel as if I once again belong somewhere. The biggest thing about moving from a place where you have lived for 43 years is seemingly losing your 'identity' - an identity tied to the bird life you studied for so many years, an identity tied to the grass, trees and the very soil you were walking on, an identity tied to "your" plants and birds and insects and little animals nurtured in your garden for so long.


I open my eyes in the mornings and in stead of hearing the Cape Robin-chat singing on my patio, I hear the exotic sound of the Burchell's Coucal outside my window, the sound of the surf pounding on the beach in stead of traffic whizzing past my front gate, and when I rise and go for an early morning walk, I see tropical (and unknown!) vegetation in stead of veld grass and Bluegum trees. A big a change as you can ever imagine!

Yes, it has taken me 6 weeks to get into the swing of things in this new life we have chosen and although I was, and still am, mourning the loss of my pets (my chooks will forever be ingrained in my heart), I now look forward to discovering all that is new in this exotic coastal location; insects I have never seen in my life, the names of the trees and plants which thrive in these hot and humid conditions and finding out which succulents like to grow here!


Monday 26 March 2012

You ARE free

“Come along then.” said Jonathan. “Climb with me away from the ground, and we’ll begin.” “You don’t understand. My wing. I can’t move my wing.” “Maynard Gull, you have the freedom to be yourself, your true self, here and now, and nothing can stand in your way. It is the Law of the Great Gull, the Law that Is.” “Are you saying I can fly?” “I say you are free.” 
- From Jonathan Livingstone Seagull 

Seagull - W&N watercolour on X-pressit 300gsm 

I've just read "Jonathan Livingstone Seagull" again for the third time, and every time I discover another lesson... 

  • You are free. 
  • You’re so free, you can choose bondage. 
  • You are so free, that no one can do anything to you. 
  • You are so free, that you are the only one who is causing anything to happen in your experience. 

The seagulls at Durban Harbour or St. Lucia, way up on the North Coast of KwaZulu Natal (South Africa), is a constant source of pleasure for me. I just love feeding them, watching them swoop down to collect tit-bits and squabbling among one another for the best pieces. Their innovativeness knows no bounds and one must actually watch all your possessions very carefully or they'll have your beach bag's contents strewn all over the beach.

 Their favourite junk food seems to be hot chips with tomato sauce - I sometimes buy ten packets to take to the beach with me - and offering that sets off a frenzy like you've never seen! And they're not shy to stare you RIGHT in the eye, something I find utterly fascinating! And they do have expressions - intention, curiosity, weariness, guile, craftiness. And it shows in their eyes when they're relaxed and contented, full to the brim with hot chips.

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Saturday 18 February 2012

Return to me....

“To fly as fast as thought, to anywhere that is,” he said, ”you must begin by knowing that you have already arrived…”
- From Jonathan Livingstone Seagull

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Watercolour in Moleskine Watercolour sketch-book - 8" x 5"

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I've just returned from a short visit to the North Coast in KwaZulu Natal (South Africa), and one of my favourite past-times is watching and feeding the seagulls. Something I didn't know, is that Seagulls are most closely related to the terns (family Sternidae) and only distantly related to auks, skimmers, and more distantly to the waders. But whoever they are related to, I personally would categorise them with Crows, one of my favourite, most intelligent birds!

The same as crows, most gulls will take live food or scavenge opportunistically. And their love for man-made "junk food" defies belief! They will go to ANY length for some tasty hot potato chips with tomato sauce, and are VERY diligent in their pursuit of these tasty snacks. This chap managed to grab my bag of potato crisps right out of my hand, flying off to settle on some rocks not far from me to enjoy his prize. But it was short-lived, he was soon flocked by all the other seagulls, relinquishing his prize to return to me for an easier snack!

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