Pheasant in the Pines

One of the 4-H projects was planting pine trees.

They would provide a quantity of trees if you signed up

with the deal being you planted them.

The old farmer would go along a line and hit the soil with a mattock

 and the farmers daughters would follow behind planting the seedlings.

Before our time the old farmers son did this too.

  

  

I was an introspective child, I enjoyed going out alone in the woods

 and fields seeing what was there and what was new. 

I could sit for a lengthy time quietly and see the woods come to life

 after the disturbance of my appearance.  

Soon the birds would start chirping again
and the squirrels would start playing from tree to tree.

 

 I had found a cozy place to sit in an older
stand of pines that were there from the old farmer's son's time. 
It was a small open space sheltered from the outside world.
No one could see you in the middle of the grove,

 a patch of sunshine showed through.  
It was also sheltered from the wind, you could hear the wind
blowing the trees, and feel it as I sat on a lower branch

 watching and listening..  

 

 

One time a beautiful ring necked pheasant ran into the clearing

 in the pines and stopped a few feet from me. 

He shimmered in a patch of sunlight allowing me to admire him

 for a few seconds (that felt like minutes) 

before he took off (on foot) again. 

This was a gift I have never forgotten.


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