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I did not have my camera with me when I first saw this little fellow. It was some time later that day when I passed this spot again with a camera. It was still there! I had held my breath all day hoping it would be.

I have not always been so lucky. For years, I made a habit of never leaving home without a camera (this was in the days before cellphone cams) but of course there were times I dropped the ball. I have a small portfolio of missed shots that I keep in my mind.

Two that spring to mind are: 1) a couple walking at night holding hands. I was walking behind them. In their outside hands they each held a glowing smart phone. Before I could get my camera out, their screens had gone to sleep.

And, 2) a poor little chickadee who had been hit by a car. He was frozen to the car's grill with his wings open. He had not been marred by the impact but simply appeared to be in mid-flight. His wing feathers were splayed, which revealed a delicate yellow in them. The car grill was a mesh of small octagons. It was sad, and beautiful. I didn't have my camera, but I took the photo with my eyes anyway.

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