tolstoy and gull feathers

i thought of the first line of anna karenina as i was trying to sort out my thoughts about these feathers: “all happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” similarly i think all perfect specimens are alike. but each imperfect specimen is imperfect in its own way. and i am more drawn to the infinity of beautiful imperfection than the limits of perfect beauty.

gull feathers from lake superior