A reason to get up early in Paradise...Sunrise

One of the things that many people do when they go on vacation is take the opportunity to sleep in ...

Well this blog entry is to show you proof of why you should get up at least one or two mornings and watched the sunrise as it rises from its nocturnal hiatus.  

There is something magical about the sun coming up and reminding us that we are blessed with another day to enjoy life, love those around us , do something good for those less fortunate...ok enough preaching ...sorry.

Anyway get up one or two days see what happens as the sun rises ....listen to the quietness and then how the birds awaken and sing as the new day begins....

In Ancient Cherokee Religion...Each morning everyone would get up at the darkness right before the sun would rise...sit and make prayers to Grandmother Sun , the giver of Life Force.   Think about it , without the sun how our lives might even cease to exist.  Plants wouldn't grow and without plants to absorb the carbon dioxide and keep our air clean ...we would suffocate.  Grandmother Sun is vital in all areas of our life, not sure of that ...think how you feel physically and emotionally when it is cloudy and dreary ,,,especially if it lasts
for more than a couple of days.


So enjoy these photos I took last week of a Sunrise here in Paradise, they were taken on the waterfront of Manteo, NC on Roanoke Island.

Ibises ,,,those funky looking birds

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/White_Ibis/id

There is not much to say about these birds other than they are my favorite to look at ,,,kind of a artsy fartsy looking bird with its long red curved beak and white body with the wings trimmed in black feathers. 

I have been intrigued with them for the last 9 years or so since I saw two hanging around the yard of a local high school on Roanoke Island ...and then started noticing more after those two had little ones. 

Then during tropical storm Beryl in a neighborhood just off of 64 , the yards had flooded and there must have been 50 or more there , drilling the ground for bugs to eat.  It was quite a scene.  

These photos were a blessing to me earlier this week...I was driving to the store and saw the first one standing in some old dead wood in marshland of Wanchese, NC.  

Enjoy ....

This is my favorite photo of this day....A friend titled this "put your left foot in"

Ospreys are returning....

Many people see the black and white birds flying around...and most know they are not sea gulls ...these birds with their distinctive markings , sharp beak and intense facial stucture...I feel are one of the coolest visitors the Outer Banks has every summer.  They come to our area for breeding and stay until the end of summer.  They Winter over in South America , but can be found year round in Florida and Mexico.  They are amazing birds not only in plummage but in personality they are not bothered by humans at all and will nest over and over again in their selected area no matter how encroached upon they are by buildings and growth.   The pictures I am sharing are taken on Roanoke Island in front of the Dare County municipal buildings...the old Pine tree they live in has its own personality.

In the last two days since the female arrived , the nest has been refurbished and increasing its height to about 5 feet high I am guessing and probably would weigh a few hundred pounds. Their nests are all stick built and are sturdy enough to with stand even the wildest of wind storms.

Ospreys are Divers and will dive into water with talons outstretched and capture live fish...they prefer the freshest.  Occasionally they will capture a very large fish that manages to squirm its way out so if you see a big fish in a road someplace it was probably a loss from a osprey or a rogue fish truck.

If you have the opportunity to watch them enjoy they are a great show.

 http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/osprey/id