Oh, What a Beautiful Morning..

Looks like it's going to be a nice day. I love early mornings like this. Sitting in my favorite chair by the breakfast nook window. I love to watch the "early birds" When I got up at 5:15 a cardinal pair, chipping sparrow, and dove were quietly eating the food that I had placed in their feeder the night before. They are used to me sitting there and don't get frightened when I move. I sit down with my ovaltine and binoculars. I love the way the cardinals are always together. He is so protective of her...even feeding her from time to time. When she is at the feeder alone, he is not far off. Usually sitting in Blue watching from his perch on a branch. It isn't long before I hear the beautiful song of the oriole. He swoops in and lands on the cup of jelly. The other birds flutter away to Blue, while he eats. Finished, he swoops back to the tallest tree in the woods. Always the same place. I can't find their nest in all the leaves, but I know come fall, when the leaves start to fall, I wlll be able to see the baglike nest hanging from a high branch. I wonder how the little orioles fared in the storm yesterday. I can imagine swaying wildly in the highest branch...maybe rocking them to sleep. Oh, here comes that bully blackbird. Maybe he isn't such a bully...am I prejudiced? Doesn't he deserve to eat too? He just has such a bossy way about him...poor thing it seems he has no friends. They only eat from the feeders while they are nesting. Later on, we don't see them near the deck. Can't I tolerate them and realize that there is enough food for all of them? Mr and Mrs Bluejay haven't been here for a while and now I hear the familiar chatter, coming from the woods. I wonder if they will make an appearance? Now there's a pair of bullies. They push their weight around and chase the others away from the feeders. The finch feeder is getting empty. They really don't like to eat from the bottom of this feeder. They prefer it to be full to the brim and fight over the top two holes. These little canary like birds are so beautiful and their antics over the top two holes delights me. The robins are out on the lawn pulling up earthworms already. The ground is saturated and will be easy pickins for them today. As I move to the computer room, I hear my favorite little bird. My little wren. She is flitting about building a new nest in the River Birch tree. The bird house is made from an old claypot and is their favorite. They nest there from year to year. There is no way I can clean this nest out...so the little male wren does it for me. He skitter, scatters bits and pieces of twigs and grasses all over the ground below...and then picks them up and puts them back. When the hole has tiny things hanging out of it...I know that the wrens have taken up residence once again. This little birdhouse is just above my Mary's Garden. I sit there in my old familiar green chair and watch. Once in a while they will sit on my statue's head. The hop around and look for goodies to eat on the mulched ground. I hear him now...just singing away. I think that he is saying, "It's going to be a nice day."

Balisha