No, this isn’t the Cormorant. I started writing the following post earlier in the year. Since then, my beautiful Tilly died from cancer at the age of 9 on the 30th April, 2022. Above is one of her puppy photos. I wanted to complete the post as a tribute to her and as a reminder of all the wonderful walks we shared together, along with her ‘sister’, Bella.

The Cormorant

Swash buckling pirate
Sitting low on log pondering.
Viper long neck still,
Staring, motionless.

Standing idly around lazing
Wings outstretched drying
Corpse sliding down its neck,
Once living, once swimming.

The Jubilee River swims by
With life. Death machine sitting,
Looking at the water like a prehistoric
Pterodactyl perched motionlessly.

There is no point fishing here today
The Cormorant has beaten me to it.
Wide eyes gazing at me laughing
Mocking the amateur.

-David Wood

This week I saw a Cormorant. Heading for home with the dogs by the banks of the river, I caught sight of movement and was thrilled to see the bird swim slowly past. It eyed me cautiously as I stood there gawking. This was my second sighting, having come across it a few weeks before. Assured that I was no threat, it paused to hunt for a while, raising it’s slender neck and head high above the water before plunging into the depths. I lost sight of it for a while but spotted it further downstream, it having manoeuvred the rapids of the mill race.

The earlier sighting from a few weeks before took place on a gorgeous sunny day, unusual for February. The dogs were sniffing and exploring while I was in a reverie, listening to the birds singing in the treetops. Lost in my daydream, I didn’t expect to see the Cormorant on the cemetery wall by the river, its wings outstretched as it sunned itself dry.

This was as far as I got with the original post before it was put aside due to a house move. We no longer live by the river. Bella and I are exploring new territory but, when emotions are more stable, we will return for visits.