“…I picked up an eastern red-spotted newt that had been hanging out under the leaves and ashes in our fire pit. […] I quietly asked him if he was really a peasant turned into a newt by a witch, but I didn’t get much of a response.”
“We gazed up into the sky as the full moon reflected off the mirror like water. There was no wind, everything felt peaceful, and the loons were singing back and forth to each other.”
“Consider what happens when a stone is dropped into a small pond of lily pads. As the water ripples away from the spot it was thrown into, it reaches and affects every individual lily pad within its range.“
“As I continue on my conservation journey in a new place, I am constantly faced with changes and challenges, yet it’s often said that challenges are what make life interesting, and overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.”
“I think spring is one of my favorite times of the year, as the world changes over from one thing to the next, and snow is gradually replaced by tentative green grass (and then more snow, from the inevitable late-season snowstorm).”
“…with careful tank monitoring, reduced feeding, and the prompt removal of any lost fishy souls; I was able to reach some sort of balance in the tank. And for about a week and a half things were pretty good. And then I tore a hole in one of the filter bags.”
“Experiences like those are attached to every piece of data in that massive sheet. This kind of data collection is time intensive and you get cold and you don’t always get to see the fruits of your labor. And yet… many people over many years have dedicated hundreds of hours to build this dataset.”
“As I go about the business of readying our boats and docks for the summer season and taking care of the million little details that need attention during the switch to warm weather operations, those two words, “persistence” and “hope” stick with me.”
