”Heard But Not Seen”

~ Elizabeth
We live amidst a variety of neighboring trees which house four different varieties of woodpeckers. Three feed regularly at our stations and Charlie sees the reclusive pileated on his walks. One of my morning delights is hearing one of them thrumming on the neighbor’s beech early in the day. I have never been able to spot the “carpenter,” though. That dull pounding in the video comes from his incessant efforts to create a nest (or eat more bugs!)

My own activity on line has been neither seen nor heard! I have been committing myself full force to writing about my great-great Aunt Lucy, last mentioned briefly nearly two years ago. I took a writing seminar at that time and it discouraged me enough to set the project down. I regret that pause and recognize now that the teacher was eager to show she knew more about writing than I did. I was in a competition I had no interest in, but it did set me back.

Now I am back researching all about her life from her artist days in Chicago to her rescuing slave girls in San Francisco to her riding junks up rivers out of Canton sharing the love of God with women and children. She never married, so her story will go untold unless I share it. I am having a blast. I still am looking for a way to work on it and keep up semi-regular posts. I love both, and I need to find a spot between “all or nothing!” I must say I so often find myself in “all or nothing” in general that I look forward to a new path.

Hope you are all well and hoping to begin to catch up a little.

19 thoughts on “”Heard But Not Seen””

  1. The book project sounds like a winner, Elizabeth. I also hear woodpeckers around Beetley, but have only spotted one of them in 12 years here. (A Common Green Woodpecker)

    Best wishes, Pete.

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  2. I definitely wish you good luck with your book project! I’ve been working on mine for such a long time, but then I get discouraged and put it down. But now I’m picking it up again. Yours sounds fascinating.

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    1. I was really helped by a seminar from the New England Genealogical society about organizing. It made me realize the challenges I was facing came with the territory. I hope you find similar companionship as you work on this important topic.

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  5. We don’t have Woodpeckers here in Australia, so that was so interesting Elizabeth! I wondered where you had gone & if you were okay. So I’m glad to hear you’re having fun!
    Blessings, Jennifer

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  6. Oh there you are 😊
    Your Aunt Lucy sounds like quite a lady, here’s to adventurous females wherever they are – and have been!
    No woody woodpeckers in my back garden either. I did see some in Newfoundland a few years ago.

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  7. Great Aunt Lucy will always take me to Paddington Bear, so if you have a real one, you must write about her! Glad you’re back in love with the process. As for blogging, it’s a tidal pursuit that comes and goes with life’s moons. I’m currently on a bit of a wane but will wax ag, in I’m sure! I’ve rather murdered that metaphor, haven’t I?

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  8. Oh! I am so happy to learn of your renewed vision for your research! I had been meaning to ask you where you are in the journey! I really appreciate your understanding about how it got squelched momentarily. That sort of thing happens more often than I realize, I think. Happy writing!

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    1. I am not sure why it hit me so hard. I think because I was feeling very tentative about my ideas so they were vulnerable to being shot down by a critical teacher. My confidence is now recovered.

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