I absolutely love being outdoors this time of year. It seems like I can't get enough of it. Contrary me, as always--since most people
are starting to chafe from the restrictions of rain, chill and early darkness.
But when has it ever been my way to love what everyone else loves, or do what
everyone else does?
Mornings on my "coffee deck" are my special delight. I rummage around in the
greenhouse and collect seeds, nuts, mealworms and other treats to spread around
for the birds, then I sit back and watch the garden come to life. Anyone who thinks fall and winter are when
everything slows down and goes dormant just isn't looking.
This year the draw to be outdoors seems stronger than
ever. I have no patience for laundry or
dishes or vacuuming or scrubbing floors.
I want to be outside with the leaves and the sprinkles and the slanting
sun. I want to experiment with different
foods and shelters for the birds and the wildlife. I want to be right out there in the middle of
things when my yard hosts a new or different guest or two.
Two mornings in a row last week, my maple tree--from which
two seed feeders and a suet feeder dangle--hosted a flock of what I call, because
of their stacatto nasal chattering, "eck-eck birds." I also call them parking lot birds, because
they are most often spotted waddling around parking lots, picking bugs and
other tidbits off car grills and blacktop.
Blackbirds. I've
never had them come to the yard before, mainly because I just don't seem to put
out what they like to eat. To have this
large group of blackbirds come down and fill the tree--"eck-eck-ing"
the entire time--was certainly unusual.
For it to happen while I was sitting out there not ten feet away from
them was remarkable indeed.
Of course, I had to consult my reference book to see what a
visit from blackbird might portend. What
I read made immediate sense.
"If blackbird shows up, it means: an archangel is with you, watching out for you
and helping you connect with Nature and the Nature spirits.
"Call on blackbird when you feel overwhelmed with city
life and you want to connect with Nature."
Okay. I get
that. And it sounds perfect to me.
No comments:
Post a Comment