Finally!!!
I saw it 😍
Prior to this photograph, the woodpecker nestled only in my imagination. In fact, on that day, I imagined it on every tree trunk I saw. I never really knew how it looked in the real world—its size, its behavior—because I had only ever seen it in a short video online. I always hoped to encounter one, but I never actively sought it out. I’m that kind of photo enthusiast whose life follows a routine, yet who loves surprises along the way. And indeed, this happened—literally—on my way back home.

When the staff at Balinsasayao Twin Lakes Natural Park start packing up, it’s a signal for me to wrap things up too. I need to leave a minute ahead since they will close all the gates. On my way down the slope, a flash of something red flew from the side of the road and then was gone. I stepped on my brake, locked my eyes on the area, opened my window with my left hand, and pulled out my camera from the bag on the passenger seat with my right. All of this happened in the same instant—a muscle memory exercised over time by moments like this ☺️. Just when everything had synchronized and was ready, I saw the bird resurface from the greenery and perch on a palm trunk—typical of a woodpecker! I fired a burst of shots, and as quickly as it appeared, it was gone. I knew I had blocked a motorist behind me—a staff member from the park—so I looked back and could see the same joy reflected in his face. He asked if I was able to pin a shot. I said, “I think so.” I was hoping, although in the back of my mind I knew something could ruin my gamble. The low-light condition was already throwing settings off the books, and I only pressed my lens on the truck’s window for stability. But the running engine could have introduced those fine cycle of vibrations beyond the compensation of the camera and lens stabilizers. What more could I do? Not my left leg, nor my voice, could command the vehicle to shut down at that moment—they were the only ones unoccupied. It was such a brief moment, but the encounter lifted me—like I was transported elsewhere.

At the park’s exit gate, I pulled over properly this time. I couldn’t wait to get home and review the shots. I smiled as I scrolled through the series. In that moment, one thought echoed through the serenity around me:
God truly knows the desires of one’s heart.


White-bellied Woodpecker
Balinsasayao Twin Lakes Natural Park
Negros Oriental, Phils
May 14, 2025