This bird crashed into my window and died on my deck. When I heard the loud thud I went outside to find this tiny body on his back with just a little life left in him. I saw him struggling and then he just gave up, there was no movement, just silence. I felt a sense of sadness as I witnessed the end of this little life. The day was warm and dreary. My deck was a deeper red than usual due to the water it had absorbed from the dense air that day. To me the wood seemed to take into its porous grain both the water from the sky and the breath from this bird; the wood seemed alive like it had a heart beat of its own while the bird lay still. I couldn't help but think a beautiful way to end things. Death is always avoided, and is thought to be the dark side of life, gruesome and ugly, but this bird left the world in style. As a witness of this transition from life to death I took a picture to capture what I can not describe in words. This is my homage to a bird, to life, loss and beauty.