Nurture
Two heads peeped out of a nest twenty feet up—green herons! Then a third and fourth hatchling appeared. After a couple of weeks the four chicks became juveniles, and began to explore. I would sit, with tea and book, noting the parents as they came and went. As the children wandered, the parents landed in trees farther away. It was a game for foraging and strength building. Many hours could go by as the four young green herons waited for their next meal, and then only the fastest would be rewarded.
dusk dwindles
the fledgling pecks
at a pine cone