Isolation Photo Project, Day 71

The universe wants balance. My camera had so much to work with yesterday. Today, not so much. After sitting in my backyard for thirty minutes, I got a shot of this bird, a White-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis).

White-breasted Nuthatches are friendly, active birds known for their clean black, grey, and white feathers. They love feasting on insects and big, meaty seeds. This one often visits my backyard bird feeder. Despite their small size, their voices are surprisingly loud, and their persistent nasal calls help me locate them easily.


It's late at night. I'm exhausted. Bhavna hasn't slept in days, and I may be unable to either.

Up until yesterday, I had avoided reading or watching any news. I had lost interest in a world I couldn't see or touch. I looked at the news headlines again today. The world is still on fire. The anger of people who have been under house arrest, anxious over having money for food, shelter and medicine, scared of dying but also of living the same miserable day over and over again, of feeling like they have no control over life, has exploded onto the street of the United States and the world. The seeds of 400 years of systemic racism and white supremacy bear fruit.

A police officer murdered George Floyd. He strangled him. George Floyd dies of asphyxiation.

And now I read that our president, Donald Trump, threatens to invoke the insurrection act which authorises the United States military to kill civilians.

I thought life during a global pandemic was "unreal", but now it's turned into a horror movie.

Submitted as part of the 100DaysToOffload project.