Random Bird Visits

Sometimes when I sit on the deck in the mornings to put on my make-up in preparation for the new day, a random bird or two will flutter to the deck railing beside me. They usually don't see me until they have landed. Then, most look surprised and a little annoyed. And fly away quickly.

One morning a small girl bird, sparrowish in looks, magically appeared. She wasn't annoyed a bit. She tilted her little bird head from one side to the other examining the large peach-colored creature in the lounge chair. Then she bounced along the railing enjoying the summer air. Only when I stood to go inside did she flit upward into the safety of the branches overhead.

I like birds.

Thinking in the Trees

Just outside our bedroom door is a worn wooden deck with comfortable lounge chairs nestled under two Arizona ash trees we planted a few years after we built our home. I remember leaning over the white iron railing two decades ago, wondering what our family would be like by the time the saplings grew tall enough to shade the deck.

One is a girl tree, loaded with seedlings, and one is a boy tree, larger and less full from the weight of offspring. Birds come and go, sometimes encouraged by seed from a feeder. It is a wonderful place to appreciate the neighbor's yellow roses spilling over the fence, morning air washed clean by the rain, and solitude. Life becomes clearer when contemplated here.

The changeability of tastebuds

Blue cheese wins today. In the first 48 years of life, whenever a particle of glorified mold found its way into my pie hole a battle alert sounded and the offending matter was rejected. Today for whatever weird reason I decided to abandon the war and give smelly blue another chance. The orchard salad looked intriguing, and the blend of yellow raisins, apples, candied pecans, chicken, aging crumbles, and greens accented with a cinnamon vinagraitte was the perfect fall lunch. Lucky me.

The 2 nicest things...

Fifteen years ago on my first day of work a kind stranger came into my office and asked, "What are the two nicest things that have happened to you today?" That simple conversation lifted my spirits and reminded me there are always reasons to be grateful. Every day. When we remember, we score.