Welcome to Poetry Friday, this week hosted by poet and educator Robyn Hood Black HERE . I look forward to see what she will share with us this week.
If you want to know more about Poetry Friday, find info HERE.
First< I want to share the postcards I received this week from Joan MacCulloch’s New Year’s exchange. Getting these cards this winter has been one of this year’s highlights, truly up lifting. Thank you Linda Mitchell, Gail Aldous, Carol LaBuzzetta,and Patricia Franz. Thank you again Joan for organizing the project.
Does everyone know about the 50 Precious Word contest Here? Basically writers are to submit a 50 word story, for 12 and under, with a beginning, middle and end. I spent hours cutting words from a story and finding out yet again how many words a writer thinks is necessary are not. I actually found it fun to tackle a prose story again, and not at all sure what I’ll end up with. It was a good distraction from reality.:)
Here’s a black pen and wash drawing from the coast at Pacifica California. I’ve become very familiar with the sand, the rocks, the waves, the ground squirrels and the ubiquitous ravens sitting on fence posts.
Intelligent Raven--
what messages do you carry
for a beach walker?
© Janice Scully 2026
I find these black and iridescent creatures fascinating and apparently they have always fascinated humans. They are thought to act as powerful “messengers, tricksters, and keepers of secrets across cultures, according to Google. . It would seem they are connected to things very deep in the human psyche. But I can attest to the fact that they don’t sit there giving secrets or advice away. One could stand there for a long time and not find out a thing.
Have a wonderful weekend and I hope some warmer weather. Upstate New York is emerging from the ice age slowly.
Thank you, Robin, for hosting.
Your watercolor is lovely. I like how your poem poses a question we can sit with. When I see birds, I wonder what their story is, where they flew in from, and where they stay on these cold days. If only we could understand their language 🙂 Happy Valentine’s Day.
Thank you, Cathy. Have a fun Valentines Day!
Hi Janice! Love your watercolor! I heard a podcast about ravens yesterday, talking about how very smart they are. I think they said that a 4 month old raven is as smart as a fully-grown monkey? It’s too bad they aren’t sharing their secrets 🙂
They are so plentiful by the California coast. Yes! Intelligence is needed for sure. Thanks Tabatha. Happy Valentines Day!
Thanks for sharing the story contest; 50 words is not very long! I love your watercolor & the poem it illustrates, Janice. Sorry it gave you no new wisdom! Secretive they are! We in Denver continue to be warmer than average, really wishing we could trade for a while. Happy weekend to you, too!
Strange weather and it doesn’t seem that America wants to fight global warming. So frustrating. But anyway, have a great day.
Those birds with plumage of soot and cinders are ever interesting, Janice. Your chance encounter has yielded more words and speculation.
Janice, I am really loving your art. Thank you for sharing this Raven. I’m listening… xo
Janice, fun post! Ravens are interesting creatures, aren’t they? And extremely intelligent too, playing tricks on us and not giving away any secrets! Your painting is sweet.
Ah, to be a question-er! A beach walk offers the perfect opportunity. Thank you, Janice.
Just so you know…your watercolors have inspired me! Thanks!!
Thanks also for letting us join you for a beach walk and a raven interrogation!
I’m glad you are trying it. I loved your comic take on poems recently. They got me thinking.
A lovely watercolor painting (inspiring my desire to draw and paint birds). Birds seem to carry much wisdom.
Love that ink and wash drawing, Janice! So lovely. I want to go on that beach walk and discover what wisdom the ravens have for me.
Love me some crows and ravens, and yours, Janice! Lovely art and words. I just found a book at the writer’s weekend I went to in Jan. and bought it simply because of its crow-illo appeal – I Am We – How Crows Come Together to Survive by Leslie Barnard Booth and illustrated by Alexandra Finkeldey (Chronicle, 2025). I remember being thrilled to discover, on my 2023 trek down the entire Blue Ridge Parkway with my hubby, that we have ravens this far south, up along the mountain peaks of the Appalachian spine.
Thanks Robyn. Thanks for the title. Looks good. It’s interesting how crows hang together but ravens, I read, are more solitary creatures.
Janice, I am glad that Syracuse is “emerging from the Ice Age” since my sister is planning to drive back from VA to NY on Tuesday. Your watercolor work is lovely. The colors are so realistic offering a serene setting. Your haiku works well with the artwork. Happy Loveruary!
Same to you, Carol! Xo