For the Birds

I wish I could tell all of you that this post will be full of inspiration and wise words to help you get through the next few minutes/hours/days/weeks or /God forbid...months but alas I am right where you are in all of this.  I am at the end of yet another day at home.  Nothing noteworthy happened today, just like yesterday and probably like tomorrow.  At least on the surface that is how it feels and looks to me.  If I dig a little deeper though, I can probably come up with something special about today, yesterday, and last week.  It is easy to get down these days so let's all take a challenge and do it the hard way and see the good side.

Today I walked, as I do every day.  I decided to mix up my route a bit and walk on the levee for a while.  I have joined many others during this home stay and started really watching birds.  It is a good season for birds right now too!  On the levee I saw a hawk land in a tree ahead of me.  I watched him/her wondering if I might be able to get a picture with my cell phone.  Hawks are very common around here so seeing one was not unusual but it was a very large bird!  I switched on my camera and just as I was ready the hawk flew to another tree.  I snapped and between my sunglasses and the sunny day I had no idea whether I got the hawk or not, I would have to wait until I got home to see.

About as good as I can do with a cell phone and lots of glare!

Since we have been home I have gone through about 8 bags of birdseed!  I have 2 3 feeders and I refill them every other day.  Some days I don't pay attention at all and other days I am like some obsessed birdwatcher all day long.  It does make me pause and wonder, is it the staying home or is it just a developmental stage?  I am going with the fact that I have very little else at this time to focus on so birds it is and if I am honest here, I think it is genetic.  I come from a long line of bird watchers.

Saw this one probably on Facebook and it cracked me up!

I had a somewhat spiritual bird experience last week.  I have been playing a lot of golf, because we can and I seem to have a lot of time these days!  Anyway, I enjoy looking around at nature while I play golf and had noticed a bluebird one day.  We do not see many bluebirds down here, or at least I haven't so I was intrigued.  I think they are such beautiful birds.  The color is just exquisite!  Of course, every time I tried to point out the bluebird to one of my golf friends, it would flit off and they would miss it.  It was becoming a phantom bird and people were beginning to think I made it up.  TJ and I even took a long Sunday walk to stalk the bluebird, to no avail.  I too was beginning to wonder if it was real.

The golf course was closed on Monday so I decided to just walk by bluebird corner and be still for a while.  I stood in the middle of the trees looking at everything that had wings and patiently waited.  I did have a fleeting thought that maybe I made the bluebird up or that maybe I have just become a crazy bird lady.  Then there it was!  That brick colored neck and that blue back.  I just watched and crept closer.  I watched it go from tree to tree and it let me get closer and closer.  I was regretting not bringing my camera, all I had was my cell phone.  I stalked the bird for a long time and then to my utter surprise and delight, it flew down about 5 feet in front of me and about 4 feet off the ground and turned it's beautiful back to me, did a little flutter dance above the ground and then flew off.  Alas, I was too stunned and it happened so fast that there is no digital proof of this.  I followed it a little longer and then it flew away...far away.  I wondered if it was permanently gone.

My new BFF!

 

He was posing for me right before he flew off to another hole on the course.

I shared this story with my sister who lives here and she too has bluebirds near her house.  I'll have to stalk them too!  She also told me they are symbols of hope and happiness, appropriate sentiments for these times.   "My" bluebird coincidentally lives on my most dreaded hole on the golf course.  It is the #1 handicap hole on the course and if you ask me, it should be a par 6 instead of par 5 for ladies because it is virtually impossible to par this hole.  I have done it once in my 10 years of playing golf.  Par for me on this hole is about as rare as sighting a bluebird!  This hole is the bane of my golf game...until recently.  I sit at the corner near the pond that has eaten more of my balls than any other on the course and now look for "My" bird.  It brings me great joy and anticipation to play this hole now with the hope of seeing the bluebird.  Like I said, it was a spiritual experience to have this creature dance for me, especially in that location.  I think I will bring my camera with me next Monday when the course is closed and spend some quality time with "my" bird.

And so, these are the small things that are bringing me bits of joy during these challenging days.  Keep looking for the bluebirds in life! 
They will bring you hope and happiness.