Curtis O’Neal
What would you do if someone promised you close encounters with the
native wildlife of the Dominican Republic? What if they promised you
a sunset, complete with such striking hues of blues, pinks, reds, and
oranges that far surpass the beauty of industrially created colors?
Would you agree to follow this person into a forest in order to experience
the joys these natural wonders have to offer? Well, I agreed to embark
on this journey, but had I known that one needed to be awake and functioning
before the crack of dawn to witness the splendor of nature’s creations...I
would have inquired whether or not nature created beauty to be seen
at night! During the first week of the summer research program, at 4:30
am (which I would consider nighttime) I had to depart my cozy bed and
battle the drudges of early morning. Oh, and it was a battle! No matter
how early I fell asleep, to not succumb to heavy eyelids, to remain
in control of all of my faculties at such a forsaken hour was extremely
difficult. But each day, I found out that it was well worth it.
A most memorable, early morning experience involves mist-netting for
birds. Jason Ortega, a student whose research focused on ornithology,
needed help setting up the mist nets in the hopes of catching an Ani
(a fairly elusive bird that he hadn’t yet caught) and I graciously (he
may say differently) agreed to help him. As we were setting up the mist
nets, we observed a large flock of Anis foraging extremely low, but
slowly making their way to the area of the mist nets. Finally, finishing
the set-up, we found that the Anis had escaped the labyrinth of nets.
Jason didn’t get discouraged though! He began to play recordings of
Ani calls to lure them in. The Anis seemed to know what was coming and
decided to convene before beginning the dangerous crossing. After about
half an hour, the conclave was broken and the Anis began their mass
exodus through the valley of nets. One by one, the Anis flew just over
the nets and looked back with what I could only interpret as a grin
of triumph! This is when I learned that in science, one needs to have
the patience of an ambush predator to accomplish successful research.
Also key to every scientist’s work is the ability to accurately describe
observations. Another one of my early morning experiences arose from
the fact that my creative energies were being used to keep me awake
rather than describe my environment. All students were required to go
out this time, again before sunrise. I decided to spend my time with
Eduardo Jovel looking for various types of fungi. I was happily performing
my initial collections when David Rosane asked me to describe what I
saw. Let me remind you that I was gathering all of my strength to fight
the encroaching army of Z’s. But going through the necessary exercise,
I began to describe my fungal specimens with all of the adjectives that
I could possibly recall in the English language. David, however, was
unconvinced. In essence, he told me that I needed not just to describe,
but to create a picture of my fungal specimens using the colors of English.
We continued for a moment and I located a fungus that I hadn’t yet collected.
Again, I was asked to describe it. And, by banishing sleep and summoning
my SAT verbal skills, I began to create a masterpiece of literature,
all describing my fungal specimen with each sense that was appropriate.
I gave such a performance David referred to me as Shakespeare throughout
the remainder of the summer! From that moment on, I avidly searched
for ways to describe my surroundings.
There is truth to the cliché that “the early bird gets the worm.” Had
I not been awake, those experiences would have been lost to me. I still
believe that 4:30am is a time when people should be in their beds sleeping,
dreaming the sweet dreams of all they can accomplish during decent hours
of the day. Although in the Dominican Republic, nature did not wait
for my convenience, I thoroughly appreciated partaking of the wonders
of nature as they occurred. I have learned that joy and life can be
found within the smallest of things, at all hours of the day.
