No Small Thing

photo by Brad Peacock

No Small Thing

It’s no small thing to learn the names

of the birds you hear each day,

perched on the tops of coneflowers

gone to seed, calling from the hedgerow.

It’s no small thing to belt out

Cardinal, catbird, goldfinch, when you

stop between breaths to listen,

teasing out their strands of song

from the rustling of river birches

and the distant roar of a lawn mower.

It’s no small thing to go so quiet

you hear the chorus of your thoughts

crescendo, then fall away as you

notice the patch of sun on a stone wall

blanketed in sphagnum moss,

and imagine the unseen beings—

nematodes and water bears—who

thrive in tiny pools of rain suspended

between the moss’ tiny leaves.


I cherish every encounter I experience with nature nowadays, especially in this time of climate crisis and grief for a changing planet. As our garden fades in early autumn, I love watching the goldfinches perch on top of coneflowers going to seed, or tearing away the petals of zinnias to feed on what’s beneath. Just the other day, walking the trail through our woods, a small bird landed on a branch right next to me. I heard no call, no tell-tale song, but when I saw it, I thought, that must be a hermit thrush. The lighter coloring around each eye gave it a surprised, almost frightened look, as if its eyes were open wider than usual. Sure enough, when I looked it up at home, that’s exactly what I had seen, a hermit thrush whose crystalline call often echoes among the trees.

There is a time, perhaps, for experiencing the other beings around us, whether we know their names or not, and then another time for learning what they are called. It’s no small thing simply to notice and appreciate, but this only takes us so far. Raised in the city and suburbs, I had very little knowledge of nature when I first moved to Vermont and fell in love with a farmer. Yet over the last decade, I have learned the names of flowers, trees, and shrubs we plant in our garden; I have learned the birds and raptors who flit and arc overhead; I have learned the habits of so many other beings around me, making them feel much more like neighbors and friends. I believe our own human lives deepen and grow richer as we learn the names of living things around us— not just so we can “label” them, but so we come to recognize and even greet them on a daily basis. This poem, inspired in part by my dear friend

Ellen Rowland

’s poem and book, No Small Thing, showed me the importance of naming in order to feel more at home where I live. And when nature feels like home, like our own neighborhood filled with familiar faces, we are much less likely to disrespect or destroy even the smallest beings we cannot see. I have been thinking lately about these lines by Mary Oliver, from her poem, “Entering the Kingdom”: “The dream of my life/Is to lie down by a slow river/And stare at the light in the trees—/To learn something by being nothing/A little while but the rich/Lens of attention.” May we all become that rich, attentive lens, learning something by humbling walking among the small kingdoms living and breathing all around.


Invitation for Writing & Reflection: Considering your own recent encounters in the natural world, with the beings you call friends and neighbors, you might begin with the phrase, “It’s no small thing,” and see what arises for you. What feels important right now to honor in nature, at this time of climate crisis and grief?


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Please consider joining me for a gentle, supportive 4-week poetry retreat/webinar via Zoom that will focus on the braided nature of grief and joy with some of my absolute favorite poets and humans. Due to the generosity of this community, there are a number of half-off scholarships (just send an email to me to request more info). Starting on Fridays at 1pm ET on October 17th (all sessions recorded and shared). There will be time to write from poems and prompts by our guests, and poems and prompts from my new book, Turning Toward Grief (now available for pre-order from my local indie Battenkill Books or wherever you buy your books!). I can't wait to be in conversation with these poets and each of you:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1549101216439?aff=oddtdtcreator