This and That and My Little Pink Bracelet

Last night found me outside deadheading flowers. I carry a little bucket around and snip the dead blossoms off.....saving a few rose petals each time. I like to put rose buds and petals in pretty little glass containers around the house. I should have taken a picture of my hosta in Mary's Garden. The flower stalks were taller that me...I am 5 feet 8. The plant is in front of the garden and these very tall stems kept lopping over and looked sort of weird. So, I cut them off....(sorry hummingbirds).I have a lot of hostas and the hummers are flying in and out of those blossoms all the time. Next year, I'm going to plant a few flowers on the back deck for the hummingbirds. We get so much enjoyment out of watching these tiny creatures. We watched a program on PBS about hummingbirds...it was told that they must feed all day into the evening to get the energy that they need to survive. Once you hang a feeder, you shouldn't take it away or not fill it, because they depend on that feeder to live. If you see them darting at each other and wonder if they are playing...they're not. They fiercely defend their territory. We have some very aggressive hummers then...I think. 

Just had a visit from my friend the cardinal. Last year we  had a papa cardinal feeding a baby cowbird on our deck feeder. At first I thought the baby might be a young cardinal, but Barbee said that it looked like a cowbird to her....and it was. The same thing happened this year. Cowbirds visit our feeders too. They lay their eggs in other birds nests to be taken care of by others. Strange isn't it? We thought a cardinal was sickly when he came and his feathers were half off and looking very scruffy.. A few weeks later they had all grown back...lovely and bright as before. Molting season is upon us.

The chickadees are back and flitting about and also the nuthatches are going up and down the tree...pecking at the bark...looking for bugs or hiding seeds.

The birds aren't singing quite as much in the early morning here. I guess that mating season is over and there is no need to impress the ladies with beautiful music.
The robins are still chirping up a storm. Talking to my daughter on the phone Sunday, was interrupted by bird song. She kept saying that she could hear my chorus of birds in the background.
I love to sit on the porch on Sunday and talk to family and friends. It's so relaxing and a good start to the day. Last evening I got a call while I was out deadheading. It was an old friend and as I sat there talking, the time just flew by. We promised to meet for lunch and said our goodbyes as the sun was going down. Our call was full of bad news. Different people we both know are in trouble with serious illnesses. It seems as we age, it is inevitable that many of us are celebrating old age with illness. We were promised the Golden Years...but the Golden Years are tarnished with one thing or another and it can't be helped.

Today is the day for Joe and I to go to a funeral. It is the funeral of a 50 year old woman. She was the dean of her school and a beloved wife. She has had cancer for 3+ years and fought the battle as no other. I wore a pink bracelet for her. Every time I looked at the bracelet I was reminded of her and her struggle.It looked like she had beaten the disease for a while, but cancer came back with a vengeance and she lost the battle.

She was an avid gardener and just a couple of weeks ago, my friend Nancy visited and found her...sitting among her flowers... weeding. So sadly, Ann has passed away, and now she is picking up her golden trowel and will forever be caring for flowers in paradise. 

Balisha