It’s Easter Break and I’m at my computer at home instead of
at work this morning. That means I get to look out the window at our bird
feeders, which I just filled about five minutes ago. I love our yard. The
activity is nonstop. In the past few minutes I’ve counted 30 indigo buntings, a
beautiful little blue bird about sparrow size, 5 blue jays, 5 doves, 3
cardinals, 2 brown thrashers, 2 red bellied woodpeckers, 1 red headed
woodpecker, and 6 squirrels. There’ll be a lot more doves, cardinals, and
squirrels across the day.
Last night we had our usual posse of raccoons. At one point
after Lana had thrown out the scraps I heard something fall over on the back
porch and went to look. A coon was up on the railing and walked right up to the
glass back door and peered in while I was standing there. A little later I saw
a possum in the yard.
I grew up in the country, of course, and have seen a lot of
critters in my life. I think I’m enjoying them more now than I ever did before,
though. I’ve spent most of my life either daydreaming or working. And whenever
I’m doing either of those things, I do them in an intensely immersed state that
doesn’t allow for many distractions. Finally now, in my fifth decade, I’m
starting to look up occasionally from whatever has my attention at the moment
and just watch the life around me. I owe
Lana for a lot of this. She’s taught me quite a bit about just experiencing
without having to analyze. It’s rather a joy.
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