It was hot, very hot though I should better say it was hot. Not just hot, but terribly hot. The sparrows were falling off the roof. The swallows, however, didn't seem bothered by the weather.
In the upper, almost withered branches of the Laburnum Watereri, better known as the "golden rain," a number of young swallows had gathered. High above me in the air, I saw several swallows, which were busy grabbing insects from the air. Then they took off in a dive towards the golden rain, where all the swallows' beaks opened spontaneously, and one of the beaks was filled with the catch.
Although only 1 swallow ran away with the catch, you could not hear the others complaining. Patiently they waited for the next round. If an adult swallow flew by, the beaks opened spontaneously. If it was a false alarm, the beaks would close again immediately.
And me? I stood in the shade, watching the scene with great pleasure.
My name is Gerry van Roosmalen, photographer and author with a passion for images and stories that touch. After years in the corporate world, I followed my heart and chose photography in 2002. I completed the Fotovakschool in Apeldoorn, specialising in portrait and reportage photography.
Documentary and landscape..
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