Sense of Place

Tag: rivers

  • Naming Deities

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    Nicolette L. Cagle, September 1, 2026Eno River, Durham, NC As I walk among the varied notes of a choral matins, sung by fish crows and blue jays and mockingbirds, I look up to the vaulted glory of my forest cathedral and give quiet thanks. I see streaks of carnation pink brushed across the azure firmament—a…

  • The Rhythm of the Land

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    by Nicolette L. Cagle, July 22, 2026, Sennett’s Hole, Durham, NC The air is thick with the reverberations of cricket frogs that clatter, katydids that creak, and birds that burr. Between the pulsing choruses and punctuated calls, the river chatters, babbling over boulders and burbling through descending levels of metamorphic rock. A gentle wind pushes…

  • Emotional Geography: From Dante to Teenage Poetry

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    by Nicolette L. Cagle, PhD, June 21, 2026 While re-reading excerpts of Dante’s Divine Comedy, it occurred to me that place and landscape play a large role in his spiritual and moral journey with the venerable Virgil. Writing in exile between 1308 and 1321, cast from his birthplace and home city of Florence, Dante’s Divine Comedy relies on…

  • Black Poplar: The Fast-Growing Pioneer of Central Europe’s Floodplains

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    by Nicolette L. Cagle, Ph.D., April 13, 2026 In recent posts, I have been exploring the dynamic floodplain forests found along the iconic Danube, Morava, and Tisza Rivers, including the resilient, rooted, and red-hued Black Alder. But Black Alder is not alone in its ability to live with instability. It is joined by Black Poplar,…