Petrel

This Petrel shawl is named after the species of bird. Petrel birds are a small web-footed, seawater birds, returning to land only to breed.

The word "petrel" comes from the Latin name for St. Peter, who was said to have walked on water. It refers to the habit of the bird species to hover just above the ocean waves. During a storm, because the birds can't actually *walk* on water, they need to remain in the air day and night, enduring the rough weather over the ocean until the storm passes.

There is a fossil record for Petrel birds assumed to extend back about 60 million years showing that the species has survived through many eras of history, and is still going strong today.

May this shawl, with its wings spread across your back, bring you the strength, perseverance and longevity of the Petrel bird.