35 Comments
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Michael's avatar

Nice photography and lovely sijo, Master Neil. I saw three great blue herons down here in the Willamette Valley.this week alone:.two flying, one standing. Do you have a Sijo pen name? Blue Heron, might be very apt.

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Neil Barker's avatar

Thank you, Michael and very much appreciated. Good things come in three's. I may adopt that pen name you mention. :)

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Melissa Lee's avatar

These are lovely. Herons are my bird of the year and the very first bird I wrote about here on Substack. I love the feathery statue picture in particular!

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Neil Barker's avatar

Thanks, Melissa and very much appreciated! They are such an interesting presence to encounter. I had never seen that statue pose before and I was not sure what I was looking at when I first saw that heron far off! :)

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Richbee's avatar

Feathery statue pose a Marilyn Monroe with skirt scene. Captures the image perfect photo.

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Neil Barker's avatar

An interesting take, Richard! ;)

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Marc Mannheimer's avatar

Quite a collection of heron poems! I didn't finish them, will come back to do so. Amazing creatures, captured beautifully.

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Neil Barker's avatar

Thanks, Marc and much appreciated. They are amazing creatures!

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Joni B's avatar

Such lovely tributes to an awesome creature. I always feel blessed by heron sightings, which both thrill and calm my spirit. Thank you for sharing your talents here 🙏

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Neil Barker's avatar

Thank you, Joni and happy to share. I agree - seeing a heron always feels like a blessing, too.

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Marisol Muñoz-Kiehne's avatar

Gorgeous, graceful great~

Blue mood turns bright by these eight~

Herons, heart heroes~

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Neil Barker's avatar

A most beautiful and appropriate haiku, Marisol. Thank you and much appreciated.

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Marisol Muñoz-Kiehne's avatar

Following your lead with the acrostic 😉

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Neil Barker's avatar

They're quite fun to play with when writing. :)

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Heidi Zawelevsky's avatar

Wonderful collection of the GBH, Neil, acrostics included! The first time I saw the feather statue pose, I did a double take, not sure what I was seeing except that the bird looked absolutely prehistoric. And so they are, descendants of T Rex. I hope you'll see more of these amazing herons this summer.

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Neil Barker's avatar

Thanks, Heidi and nice catch on the acrostic! I couldn't resist and this was fun to work with in this sijo. You really can see those prehistoric roots in the Great Blue Heron.

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Heidi Zawelevsky's avatar

Their call also sounds kind of prehistoric!

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Neil Barker's avatar

Agreed!

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MK Creel's avatar

These shots are amazing. You have skillfully (and soulfully) captured the majestic presence of herons.

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Neil Barker's avatar

Thank you, MK Creel and very much appreciated.

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Kim Nelson's avatar

I often see herons on my meditative walks, but have never captured their images as they are captured here. Stunning photographic work aligned with well-crafted verse.

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Neil Barker's avatar

Thank, Kim and much appreciated. That's great you're able to see them on those meditative walks. Herons have a meditative quality about them that I find calming and fascinating.

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Melanie Bettinelli's avatar

Beautiful photos and poems. I'm especially struck by the photo of the herons roosting in the dead tree. Somehow they look too impossibly large to actually be perching on those branches.

We have occasionally visited a local park that has a bunch of of nesting herons, but I don't have a camera that can take adequate photos. Still, they're majestic to watch.

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Neil Barker's avatar

Thank you, Melanie and much appreciated. I was really fortunate that day seeing those herons. They're a treat to see and I hope to see some nesting one day - something I have yet to see.

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Caroline Mellor's avatar

Wow! Beautiful photos and lovely verse. Herons are always magnificent. 🩶🩶🩶

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Neil Barker's avatar

Thank you, Caroline and very much appreciated. Agreed that herons are always magnificent. :)

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Timber Fox's avatar

Some truly magnificent photos, and poems to match. I especially like Watching the World Watching You.

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Neil Barker's avatar

Thanks and very much appreciated! I enjoyed going back through these posts and remembering each of the herons.

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Rajani Radhakrishnan's avatar

These are lovely Neil... the standing and waiting while the world moves, seasons change and rain falls...striking images. Especially " The world around drifts past barely noticed and forgotten.

With no attention paid nor worry given, did it exist?"

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Neil Barker's avatar

Thank you, Rajani and very much appreciated.

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James Freitas's avatar

I love the 7th shot up from the bottom, Neil. A bafflingly photogenic bird, and cooperative too. They don't mind posing and playing along. Thanks for sharing these.

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Neil Barker's avatar

Thanks, James. Yes, this heron was quite patient and practically ignored me that day. They were so locked in on hunting.

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Mary Hone's avatar

Great Blue Herons are one of my favorite birds. We recently found a rookery, with lots of young ones.

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Neil Barker's avatar

They was such a striking bird to see. That's great that you have found a rookery of them. I have not seen nestlings of Great Blue Herons before.

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Mary Hone's avatar

Baby dinosaurs. Lol

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