I love seeing Northern Cardinals (Cardinalis cardinalis) throughout the year, but especially during the dark days of winter when my senses are starved for bright colors. Many folks suffer from some degree of seasonal affective disorder, a type of depression related to changes in seasons that is characterized by fatigue, hopelessness, and social withdrawal. The current pandemic has undoubtedly exacerbated those symptoms. As most of you know, I find refuge in nature, and often a simple walk in the wild helps to lift me out of my gloom.
I spotted this handsome male cardinal last week at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. His brilliant red plumage immediately raised my spirits and brought a smile to my face. The world had not changed, but my attitude had improved.
It has become a bit of a cliché, but I really like the old adage, “You can’t control the wind, but you can adjust your sails.” As Phillip Kennicott noted in his commentary on the presidential inauguration in the Washington Post, “the funny thing about clichés is that, while we are by definition tired of them, it’s when we ourselves are exhausted — tired beyond measure, even broken into bits — that their power often takes us by surprise.”
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Beautiful snaps
We all need hope and happiness, Mike, and being amongst nature gives us just that. Nature really is beautiful.
I love this little bit. I’d call it orange though rather than red but does it look more red in real life? It looks such a proud little bird. I bet he has a story to tell.
Thanks, Tricia. The exact color of a cardinal depends a bit on lighting and on individual birds, I think. This one definitely has a lot of orange-red in his feathers. (Working with watercolors has increased my sensitivity to color variations, with some reds warmer and some cooler). Here’s a link to one I photographed in the snow a few years ago that looks a little cooler in color temperature. (https://michaelqpowell.com/2018/01/06/cardinal-in-the-snow-2/)
Yes that one does look more red, it’s probably the lighting as you said. I lvoe watercolours but haven’t worked with them for a long time now. I’ve recently signed up for an online drawing course for beginners, hoping to get back into art again.
Very Colorful Mike!
They are stunning birds. Great shot, Mike.
Thanks, Dan. We sort of take them for granted because they are here year-round. I was shocked to learn that cardinals are essentially an eastern bird–there are almost no cardinals in the western half of the United States.
I think I read someone from CA once saying they had never seen one.
Great post! This bird brightened my day, thanks!
Thanks so much. It is amazing to me how much little things matter. A kind word, a simple smile, or a colorful image can brighten our day in a disproportionate way. 🙂
Very true!! Thats what I love about blogging. A litlle way that we can bring smiles, which is a big thing. 🙂
Indeed, and the amazing thing is that we never know for sure when we will have that effect on others. The circumstances or mood of a reviewer or reader will affect the reaction they have to a particular post we write.
Exactly! 😊
Thanks, Kathy. It is good for the soul and good for the body too. The sunlight helps add vitamins and the exercise helps getting the blood circulating. 🙂
He’s a beauty…and I agree, getting outside is good for the soul!
Good reflection on the effect of nature and colour on our mood, Mike.
Thanks, Chris. The inauguration and change of administration here helped too, but I wanted to avoid mentioning politics directly in the posting. 🙂
Definitely an attitude brightener – thank you!
Excellent capture, Mike! Seeing a Cardinal is definitely a spirit lifter.
Thanks, Ellen.
A handsome portrait, Mike. His color certainly uplifts!
Thanks, Eliza.
I find it really funny to think these are just a common sight for you and for me they seem so extraordinary. I never tire of seeing photos of them. This one is beautifully bright! btw, does their crest always stick straight up like that?
Thanks, Liz. I think that the cardinals have their crests up nearly all of the time. Sometimes the crest is more prominent than at other times, but I can’t recall seeing one with a completely flattened crest. Thanks to this blog I have come to appreciate the fact that the birds that I see regularly may be rare or non-existent in the places where some of my readers live. That is one of the reasons why I love posting shots of them. I hope that I never become so jaded that I fail to see the beauty of a cardinal.
I’m very confident your hope will never be disappointed .. I couldn’t imagine you failing in that respect 🙂 Really glad you post lovely photos of them!!!
They are realy gorgeous !
Thanks. I totally agree. 🙂
A pop of red in the winter is indeed cheerfull.
Any bright color will do for me in winter. For the record, I drive a coppery orange KIA Soul and often find myself smiling when I see the color of my car. 🙂
I feel the same way about cardinals (and bluebirds and Carolina wrens and hummingbirds and cedar waxwings–or would if I ever saw any). They bring joy. And thanks for the link to the Kennicott op-ed. I had missed that, as I miss most of the Post now that I read it only online. Enjoy this spectacular (but cold!) day.
Thanks, Nina. I even saw a few snowflakes a little while ago blowing in the wind. I get the Post hardcopy only on Sundays, so I don’t tend to read as much of it as I did when it was delivered daily. As for joy, there are so many of them that make me happy. I think that comes in part from slowing down and observing them and feeling a kind of kinship with them as we experience nature together.
Once for many, many months I clung to the saying about adjust your sails. We all need hope and strength for endurance right now.
Amen. This pandemic has definitely turned into a marathon rather than a sprint–with quite a ways to still go.
Great picture! I love spotting cardinals too. 😁
Thanks, Suzanne. Although I love to photograph powerful birds like bald eagles, I think that I am happiest when I am photographing the familiar ones that so often we take for granted.
[…] Hope and happiness […]
Great picture…
I have been reading The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. One paragraph reads as follows: “A creative writing teacher at San Jose State used to say about cliches: “Avoid them like the plague. ” Then he laughed at his own joke.”
In these tough times your post and photo made me smile.
I love those kinds of jokes. A friend who knows me well gave me a Dad Joke calendar, so I have at least one bad joke a day. Today’s is, “How often do you like jokes about elements? Periodically.” 🙂
Lovely pic.
Thanks.
What a beautiful cardinal and blog. I find I’m constantly adjusting my sails in the wind. You may have given me an idea for some of my writing.
Thanks, Kristie. I love too share both my photos and my feelings–my blog postings tend to be a reflection of my mind and mood at the moment when I am composing them.
Thank you for all the beauty in this post. It is difficult to understand the seasonal changes you are privy to because I live in California where it has two seasons, mild and hot! It was a special privilege to view such natural beauty. Again, thank you for your post. Blessings, Christine C Sponsler
Thanks for your kind words, Christine. I try to share the beauty of nature as I find it in my local area. Over time I have become increasingly aware that those reading my blog live in a lot of different places with different landscapes, wildlife, and seasonal patterns. I am convinced, though, that there is beauty to be found everywhere, if we stop and look and listen. I was stationed in southern Arizona for several years when I was in the Army and I remember my initial shock at the starkness of the high mountain desert. Eventually it grew on me and I came to love it.
[…] Hope and happiness: 213 views, originally published—22 January 2021 […]