It’s about 10 AM on a sunny South Florida day as I am drinking my coffee and enjoying the quiet morning when I hear a noise at my window.
It’s about 10 AM on a sunny South Florida day as I am drinking my coffee and enjoying the quiet morning when I hear a noise at my window. I look over to see this tiny little green face peering in my glass door. At first, I think he sees his reflection and will eventually leave. But that isn’t what he does. What happens over the next thirty days is a mystical journey full of messages, symbolism and lizard magic that came literally knocking at my door.
I am a photographer and artist and after about ten minutes of incessantly tapping on my door, I go over sit on the floor in front of him and grab my phone to take some photos. Still, I am thinking that he is looking at his own reflection in the glass. But the moment I sit down I see his head tilt and move in my direction. I think; does he see me? So I test the theory out and move, and yes his head and eyes move along with me. We keep doing this little dance for a few minutes and every time I move, he moves. Ok now I am thinking, he is just following my shadow behind the glass, he cannot really see me. I grab my phone and take photos and I capture a bunch of really great pictures. He is sitting perfectly still so I just shoot away.
As I am shooting and laughing and basically talking to myself or so I thought, I noticed that when I would speak or laugh his head would move like he was listening to me. Now I am thinking, this is definitely crazy, is this little guy really hearing me? I am starting to trip out a bit because the more I talk and move the more he is responding. The clincher was every time I walked away from the door he would puff up and bob his head in a yes action. I know that Knight Anoles are territorial and I also know that that is a sign of aggression or for attracting a female. What was crazy was that he would do that until I walked back to the window. As soon as I came back he would stop. I tried probably a dozen times to get that on film. Every time he would do it I would run back with either my phone or camera but he would settle down as soon I got there. Almost like he just wanted to get my attention and now that he has it - he is all good.
That first day was much like a strange dance through the glass. I believe very strongly now that he was working to get my attention. He stayed that first day until the afternoon when the sun gets very hot on my patio, around 3 PM. When he finally left I went outside and crouched down from his perspective and could see that yes he could see in my loft. As the sun gets lower in the late afternoon there is more of a mirror effect but in the morning when he was coming by, the sun was not direct. He could see all the way into my living room. How interesting I thought, what a cool experience not dwelling too much on it except to say to myself, I wonder what that was about?
But the very next day - same time, same place. I hear tap, tap, tap and look up and see a cute little green face at my glass door.
What do you do when you wake up one morning and find a tiny lizard tapping at your door? This is the true story of a brief 30-day relationship between author/photographer Melisa Caprio and a Cuban Green Knight Anole lovingly named King Henry. Caprio reveals the mystical messages she receives from King Henry as she intuits them.She documents with her camera and iPhone daily visits with her tiny green friend. Each morning over a cup of coffee Caprio and King Henry sit and study each other. She receives her daily messages and animal medicine that he is offering. King Henry seems to enjoy getting his photograph taken and poses for her. Join Caprio on her journey through this light-hearted magical book filled with insights and beautiful color photographs of the Cuban Green Knight Anole, named King Henry.
