By John W. Garbutt- Class of 2019
“As meteorological winter began, North Texas was awaiting a 3rd front of arctic air. Though it was only the beginning of December everyone was dressed as if they lived in Chicago.”
Letter to A Friend
By John W. Garbutt- Class of 2019 “I wrote this in January of 2020 on a lazy Sunday afternoon while watching football and glancing out the window at the American Kestrel below.”
The Sunrise
By John W. Garbutt- Class of 2019: “From the earliest faint light of astronomical sunrise through civil sunrise, to the sun cresting the horizon; witnessing the start of a new day has always been my favorite time of day.”
My Favorite Things through the Four Seasons: Autumn
John W. Garbutt, Class of 2019 – It was the day before the autumnal equinox, and I noticed the Barn Swallows were gone from around my home. Perhaps it was oversight and they had been gone for a couple of weeks. Regardless of the exact timing of their departure, when the harbinger of spring departs, autumn is near.
My Favorite Things through the Four Seasons: Summer
John W. Garbutt- Class of 2019- “On June 20th, about 20 minutes before the summer solstice, a long day of work was complete. As I was leaving and looking westward, a large bird flew over. It may have been the tiredness, but I was sure it was a Barn Owl chasing the last few minutes of spring as it flew toward good hunting grounds.”
Finding Happiness Through Sharing Nature
John W. Garbutt – Class of 2019- Over time, I learned to find happiness alone through nature. A majority of the learning has been from behind the camera’s viewfinder, the eye piece on my binoculars; and through contributing to the chapter’s monthly newsletter, Shaking the Trees.
My Favorite Things through the Four Seasons: Spring
John W. Garbutt- Class of 2019- It was near the end of February when my sister brought up the imminent arrival of Barn Swallows. Usually the first migrant, the avian harbinger of spring arrives in early March. A couple of years previous, I had seen my first one on the last day of February. It was a day or two later that my sister had the same experience with a February Barn Swallow.
My Favorite Things through the Four Seasons: Winter
John W. Garbutt- Class of 2019-
It was the first day of winter. It felt like winter but still looked like autumn. Christmas was a few days away and I knew with the forecast that it would feel like spring by the time I arrived at my parents. Like Irving Berlin in 1940 on that 80-degree Southern California winter’s day, I also dreamt of a white Christmas.
My Favorite Things through the Four Seasons: Autumn
John W. Garbutt, Class of 2019- For me, in my youth, I always began thinking of autumn as something in relation to football and Thanksgiving. Now as an adult and birder, the season begins with migration in August. On the morning of the 16th a steady stream of Upland Sandpipers called above on their journey south. It was as if they were attempting to pull the sun lower in the sky and shorten the days toward autumn behind each subsequent wave.
A Favorite Place
John W. Garbutt, Class of 2019- It is a place that you wake at 0100 for so you can arrive before sunrise. At dawn, you set out on the trail, the day’s trailblazer, the brim of your hat cobwebbed. Canyon Wrens great the day with song. An elk bugles in the distance.