John James
John James
beautiful bird matter
But the moment a bird was dead, no matter how beautiful it had been in life, the pleasure of possession became blunted for me.
dancing dull mathematics
Mathematics was hard, dull work. Geography pleased me more. For dancing I was quite enthusiastic.
nature becoming grew
As I grew up I was fervently desirous of becoming acquainted with Nature.
drawing firsts made
My drawings at first were made altogether in watercolors, but they wanted softness and a great deal of finish.
party rain men
Thank God it has rained all day. I say thank God, though rain is no rarity, because it is the duty of every man to be thankful for whatever happens by the will of the Omnipotent Creator; yet it was not so agreeable to any of my party as a fine day would have been.
men way welcome
Great men show politeness in a particular way; a smile suffices to assure you that you are welcome, and keep about their avocations as if you were a member of the family.
nature superiors
. . .nature indifferently copied is far superior to the best idealities.
heart delight my-heart
My heart swelled with uncontrollable delight...
song bird listening
I never for a day gave up listening to the songs of our birds, or watching their peculiar habits, or delineating them in the best way I could.
distance spring farewell
Look at that mallard as he floats on the lake; see his elevated head glittering with emerald green, his amber eyes glancing in the light! Even at this distance, he has marked you, and suspects that you bear no goodwill towards him, for he sees that you have a gun, and he has many a time been frightened by its report, or that of some other. The wary bird draws his feet under his body, springs upon then, opens his wings, and with loud quacks bids you farewell.
different degrees kind
There is but one kind of love; God is love, and all his creatures derive theirs from his; only it is modified by the different degrees of intelligence in different beings and creatures.
years tendencies walks
During all these years there existed within me a tendency to follow Nature in her walks.
forests noble trouble
In my deepest troubles, I frequently would wrench myself from the persons around me and retire to some secluded part of our noble forests.
giving-up bird listening
Never give up listening to the sounds of birds.