I spent four hours birding in the woods today and was excited to finally spot some warblers! I saw both Pine Warblers and Palm Warblers (an entire small flock of ’em). The Palm Warblers are just passing through; they breed much farther north, chiefly in Canada. But some of the Pine Warblers will be sticking around and raising families.

It was an otherwise good birding day. I saw and heard several Brown Thrashers. Not exactly exotic, but they are only here in the summer months and their intricate songs are a real treat to hear. I like hearing them skulk around in the underbrush, too. I also saw two Pileated Woodpeckers goofing around with each other on a tree trunk. That was cool…I always love seeing those crazy birds. Down on the water, I witnessed some fascinating social interactions between two male Mallards and one female. It seemed like the one male was trying to chase off the other one, but at one point the female acted like she’d had enough of both of them and chased them off so she could do some feeding in peace. Eventually the one guy got the girl and the spurned fellow cruised off to sulk by himself.

I felt like I could’ve stayed out there all day. Four hours passed so fast, and I was reluctant to leave. Lately I’ve been thinking about those solitary days in the past spent alongside a muddy river. I spent so much time outside back then…it was the only way I kept from going crazy. It seems like I’ve always felt much more at ease in the woods, or otherwise surrounded by nature and wildlife instead of inside, surrounded by “stuff.” When I’m inside, I tend to go too far inside myself. It’s like I’m being squeezed tight by the walls around me. But outside I can breathe, I can untether my soul and let it roam free.

I think I am just going to be forever restless.