Thursday, January 1, 2009

Skywatch Friday: Geese in Flight

I had hoped to get pout this morning and get a nice pic of the first sunrise of the year. Unfortunately the weather was not cooperative and I have not seen the sun yet this year. That reminds me of a story that I read when I was young, sorry I don't remember the title, about a kid who moved with his family from earth to a different planet that did not regularly see a sun. All of the kids picked on him because he was different. Then one day the sun was finally going to be visible for a short period of time, this was the first time that most of these kids would see the sun, and the rest of the kids locked up the kid from earth. When they finally saw how wonderful the sun was and how great it made them feel they all realized what they had done and they were very sad and ashamed. Maybe some day in the future we will no longer be able to see the sun. Maybe when the sky is filled with pollution, and the birds and plants are all gone, when we live in a sterile man made world maybe then the greedy people who think that the world is just there for their pleasure will be sad and ashamed. But by then it will be too late just like it was for those kids on a distant planet.
Fortunately there is still time. As I look at all of the pictures of the sky, from around the world, that are posted as part of Skywatch I am hopeful that this new year will bring change for the better. So I will add in this picture of Canada geese in a beautiful blue that I took on Christmas morning 2008.

Happy New Year and welcome to 2009

31 comments:

EG CameraGirl said...

Interesting story...especially since you remember it from your childhood.

All the best in 2009!

Ruth said...

I can hardly bear a day without a peek of sunshine and hope we never leave the earth is such a state as you describe. I seldom photograph geese as they are so common around here, but should try. Your picture is well done.

Ana said...

I know this story too! Great post and great shot too. I hope we will continue taking shots of sky and nature for many years to come.

Gaelyn said...

Absolutely wonderful capture. I want to see the sun for the rest of my days.

Gill - That British Woman said...

what a lovely photo....

Gill in Canada

Steffi said...

Happy New Year 2009 and Happy SWF!Nice picture!

Pearl Maple said...

Beautiful photo to celebrate new years and Sky Watch Friday. Thank you for sharing the story and reminder to appreciate our skies.

Arija said...

Some stories with real meaning we always remember, and yours is a lovely one. In the great fire that took all we had built uo in 25 yrs. of marriage, I missmany things, one iparticular was a children's story called "The General" where a child wakes up this military man to the beauties of nature and in the end he sits like a kid in a meadow with all of his medals on his chest surrounded by wildflowers and graced with a beutifully foolish grin. I've been looking for that little book now for 25 years in every used bookstore we pass.

I have always loved geese and wild ones in particular. Thank you for your (as always) beautiful shot.

vincibene said...

Wonderful picture!

Helen said...

That is a beautiful shot. I get so ill with the people where we live. Someone in this small town is burning something every day to mess up the air we breathe. We do have garbage pickup so there is really no need for them to be burning leaves and such. Helen

esnorway said...

nice pic and good story. happy new year!

Kathie Brown said...

I know that story well. It was written by Ray Bradbury and the planet is Venus. The title is "All Summer in a Day" and I believe you can find it out on the internet if you search for it. Someone sent it to me after we discussed remembering this very same story during the monsoon last summer. The main charecter is a little girl and the other children shut her in a closet for the one hour in 7 years that the sun shines. She is from earth and remembers days of sunshine, but those children have lived on Venus all their lives and they don't believe her. Your geese in a blue sky are gorgeous and full of hope for the New Year and for the wilderness to continue.

Faery said...

I love the photo, I love your blog and I loved this story. I am always teaching my four year old nephew how to take care of nature, so your blog will help me a lot.Thanks.
Happy New Year! :)

Rottlady of the Ozarks said...

It is a great photo the start the year and I know what you mean about hating the days the sun doesn't shine. Happy New Year!

Raven said...

Beautiful photo. I hope we wise up. I have some more hope with the new administration coming into office. I enjoyed your top ten post below - all wonderful photos as are the calendar shots on your sidebar.

Linda Jacobs said...

I love the detail you can see in this photo!

I've never heard that story before. Thanks for sharing it!

Lew said...

Great shot of the geese in flight! You have some great photos of the birds. The owls and the hawks sure know how to stare the camera!

Anonymous said...

Just wonderful, happy New Year.

Unknown said...

Birds in flight (and honking), what a delight.

Connie T. said...

The geese look so clear. Nice sky picture.

angie {the arthur clan} said...

What a beautifully written reminder to appreciate our skies. Your photo is absolutely lovely!

Adirondackcountrygal said...

Great story and photo too!

Naturegirl said...

A beautiful image and way of getting a serious message across.. ..wishing you the Happiest New Year with many a
sunny sky!

Anonymous said...

I have soaring hope for the new year and years to come. I believe we are at a turning point where people are beginning to realize the importance of the ecology and conservation for our planet.

Teaching the following generations this importance and developing young minds with environmental awareness will be the key to saving what we have now and improving our future.

Thanks for posting the "All Summer In A Day" story. Whenever I think about the direction our governments sometimes take us, I think about the warning from Klaatu in "The Day The Earth Stood Still."

Mary said...

I love seeing the geese in the air. This is a beautiful shot of them.

Loran said...

The sky is all the more beautiful when graced by birds.

Grammy said...

Truly awesome photo I love the detail in the shot. What type of camera or lens do you use?
Happy New year.

Reader Wil said...

Very good post! You are absolutely right we need to work hard to get a cleaner4 world. This month I am going to order solar panels. Here's to a clean pollution free world!!

Anonymous said...

I didn't know this beautiful story, I liked it very much. The photo of the geese flying in the pure blue sky is an excellent choice for this opening week of 2009. Happy New Year! :-)

Tarolino said...

Thank you for sharing this image of these majestic birds. It is truly a wonderous image showing what beauty there is to be seen in this world of ours. I hope that it will never go as far as you describe but it is true that some people should have a good look in the mirror and think about what the humanity is causing this exceptional planet and its habitants.

Anonymous said...

Beautiful picture ! ! !
Make from 2009 a great year!
Gr.
P-TER