"But I Have My Birds"

Little Blue Heron, Egretta caerulea.

I usually keep these to 1,000-1,500 words. This is 2,600 with lots of pictures, the majority I took. If not, I say where they’re from. A big, greasy personal essay, as

Sarah Crowder

says in “Bodies of Water.” Birds—winged prisms through which I view life and the world—can lead to big, greasy stuff.