2004 Journal Quilts

August 2004

Almost every day, my dog, Casey & I walk a trail which meanders alongside a small creek, behind the housing developments. It is an interesting juxtaposition of urban and rural. We see small wildlife - birds, rabbits & squirrels.

One day, in my peripheral vision, I saw a large ball of white fly across the trail in front of me. It went into the trees which were immediately adjacent to the trail. I heard a mewing sound. My subconscious translated what I had seen. Something had been thrown from one of the backyards on the other side of the trail. It hit & injured a small animal.

I peered into the brush, looking for the source of the mewing sound. I realized it was down at my feet. Looking down, I saw a rabbit less than a foot from me. I reached out and pulled aside the tree branch which was blocking my view. Holding the rabbit, wings still spread, was a hawk. A huge hawk, frozen against the ground. The rabbit mewed again. I looked at the hawk, my mind registering the almost 4 ft wingspan and head the size of a tennis ball. I froze. Casey, at my side, was also frozen, not making a sound. The hawk pulled its' wings in, still holding the rabbit. I stood without moving for about 30 seconds, watching the hawk watch me.

I released the branch and stepped slowly back from the trees. The hawk released the rabbit, which darted across the path at my feet. The hawk flew up to a low branch, about 15 feet away. I could see him clearly now, and we watched each other for a while. I apologized for ruining his dinner, irritated with myself for being a party to the escape of a rabbit. I continued my walk, hoping the hawk would hunt successfully again that day.

I've stopped and looked at the site several times. There is no sign of the hawk or the rabbit or my encounter with them. All through the month, I found feathers along the path. They varied in color and size. My "collection" became this quilt.