May, final reflection

Today is the first day of May, and if in Burlington, would be the final day of in person classes. It is a good day for us to reflect and look back upon the semester and see how we grew- but also how the earth grew and the seasons changed.

I remember the first time I went to my phenology spot in Burlington I could identify none of the tree or plant species, knew nothing about wildlife activity and could not tell a song sparrow from a red tailed hawk call. I never would have expected me to change and grow as much as the flowers. The Rubenstein teachers all have such passions for birds and nature and made me feel I have missed out on so much. Their passion has made me passionate about birds and herps and wildflowers. I have noticed more species in my hometown than ever before.

TAs like Emma have inspired me to look into herbalism and I have been making my own dandelion honey! and violet lemonade! I also have been looking into plants to help me get off my ADD meds and use healthier natural cures. I would not have become interested in this if I didn’t have someone interesting showing me!

I also have become into birding due to my ENVS class and Brendan Fisher paired all of us up with Audubon members to help us learn how to bird! So through this I have been able to start something I never imagined I could do! I have gotten my whole family into watching and IDing birds in our backyard. Now I am constantly aware of their calls around me. 

So today looking at the nature around me, I feel so much more connected and a part of it than I did in september. I also have grown fond of watching the same trees change. While this phenology blog was a pain to do and I often found myself running the day before to get it done, it forced me to go outside and make meaningful connections with the land. Going to the same spot helped me grow close to my friend Grace as well, because I learned she went to the same spot so we would go together. The phenology blog definitely has forced me to learn about the process and changes of the seasons, which I am now grateful for.

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