Our real education begins outside the classroom with the joy of discovery

WHAT do you see when you go for a walk? I suppose it depends on what you are interested in, and what you are looking for.

I used to be what they call a birder. This meant that I saw birds everywhere I went (no jokes, please, those ones are so very tired).

I would walk out of the door onto the street in Stoneybatter, and the first thing that would catch my eye was the gull perched on the chimney opposite. When I landed in a foreign airport, I would be scanning the grass and pools alongside the runway. I still do. A snowy owl in Boston! A cattle egret in Orlando! What kind of plover is that? When I went for a walk in the Wicklow hills, I was conscious of the scenery as well, of course. I even thought I appreciated it, but I still focussed mainly on what feathered life might be left on the blanket bogs. I thought I loved nature, and knew quite a lot about it, but a walk without seeing something flying, or perching, seemed like an empty walk.