Crow on a Post

Crow on a Post / Oil on black canvas /  5x7 / unframed / $68

sold

I USE A DAILY PLANNER, a paper one, in addition to Alexa, a wall calendar, emailed reminders, notes to myself, etc. And now that Peter has died, I am relying even more on my planner. 

So I bought a special one this year, a vision-board kind of planner made by Inner Guide. It is quite a tree-hugger-zen-hoo-ha-Birkenstock kind of thing, and I really love it. Each week's two-page spread has an area to list priorities, a reminder to stay on track, a place to write gratitudes, etc. There's a monthly intention area, as well as a look-back and assessment of the previous month. 

And at the start, there's a series of questions to answer, intentions to set and decisions to make. The first question - and it stopped me in my tracks - was "What do you value most in life?" 

It took me days to answer - and I answered "My family." 

Friends had other ideas. One said "art," another said "God," and another said "health." 

What do you value most in life?  

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For Today

YEARS AGO, MURDERS of crows (big flocks) roosted just outside of towns. Now, they often roost in cities. To find out why, and more about their roosting habits, click here. 

Here is a poem about crows roosting. I found it in a piece on "A Bird Black as the Sun," a collection of poems about crows and ravens, by California poets. 

Black Birds

When the crows come

black against the darkening sky

their wings obscure the sun

and small sounds drown

in their strident caws.

They storm the walnut tree

snatch the green fruit

drop it from great heights

retrieve the cracked kernels.

Again and again they dive

From tree to ground

feathers gleaming

where stray sunrays touch.

And when the mountains turn blue

with the haze of eening

the crows life off in ebony formation

head toward some secret roost 

where they blend into the night. 

- Lisl auf der Heide