When I first came to Florida I lived in Pasco County, on the Gulf of Mexico. Moving to Florida from Michigan is a bit like arriving as an immigrant in a foreign country. Many things are different.
About a mile or so out into the Gulf I observed houses, built up above the water on stilts. Pilings were sunk in place during the early 1900s. They were temporary houses of refuge from frequent rainstorms or a place to hold the catch. To a Northerner, they are similar to the ice fishing shanty out on the frozen lake.
Privately owned and grandfathered in as permissible buildings, they are handed down from one generation to the next. Unique treasures, permits are no longer allowed for more stilt homes.
The Florida Blue Heron too has long stilt-like legs lifting his body up high above the water, keeping him dry. His long neck reaches deeply to suddenly spear fish and baby gators with his spike-like beak. He often stands alone along the shallows in my backyard, just as the house on stilts upon the Gulf waters.
(C) Kelly Jadon, An Ekphrastic Blog