West Coast Park - Bee eaters

With so many visits to this park almost three to four times a week, I think I should do something that would enhance my enjoyment of nature other than taking photographs. So today, I armed myself with my ink and brush and sketch pad and decided that I should, at the end of my visit, leave with a decent painting or drawing of my favourite part of the park. I did achieve my goal but only after I had given in to my incorrigible way of connecting with nature which was of course to take photos of anything not seen before and especially of birds no matter how many countless times I have seen them. I took quite a few photos of the kapok tree cotton pods that are now mostly ripened and dispersing the seeds via fluffy cotton balls that they release in the wind. I took several photos of a few colourful bee eater birds and even though the photos were not sharp, I was pleased to have captured their colour and free, flying spirit amongst the trees. I took pictures of the fish that swim in an orderly line below the wooden platform hoping to be fed. Finally, when the drawing is done and I am satisfied, I took photos of it against the scene I had sketched. When I was leaving the park, I saw piles of freshly cut grass spaced out on a slope and the smell of cut grass always, always transports me back to my childhood. The smell of grass is the strongest activator or my childhood memories. I just love that smell.

There is an insect, probably a bee, in the beak of the Bee eater on the left.

A monitor lizard swimming stealthily in the water.

Mission accomplished!

Cut grass and nostalgia.