It's
been a while ... I know, I know. Life got in the way.
I seem
to be writing this with monotonous regularity on this blog.
So - I
have decided, I obviously cannot keep up a weekly blog. I shall
attempt twice a month. Is that a deal, dear readers?
I've
been pondering now for 2 days, since I received a gentle reminder I
hadn't written anything for quite some time, over what to write
about. I have had an awful lot on my mind lately. I guess in an
effort to deal with it, I have taken on a lot of chores or projects,
etc. It doesn't help I have a half baked approach to most things
coupled with a short attention span... you get the drift.
Then
last night Lee had to go to a business mixer thing downtown, so I got
out some nice cheese - a touch of Gambazola, herbed goats cheese, a
tart Havarti with 2 slices of homemade bread, a proper Dijon mustard
and a handful of sherry toms. I poured myself a glass of deep red
Cabernet and settled down. I gazed out the window in comfortable
solitude and looked at our canopy of trees.
We
have two very large trees - an oak and a maple tree - in our backyard
with a very bushy lush hedge around the porch. All was quiet. The
cats lay next to me in quiet companionship and we were swallowed in
to the dense, peaceful green.
Time
in this house has not always been kind to us but I do love the back
garden. It's a jardin savage but it's our private shield of
green with lots of birds.
The
birds on the suet feeder provide daily joy and entertainment. The
starlings are the terrible hooligans we love. The dazzling blue jays
are raucous. The bright crimson cardinals don't have a care in the
world The red breasts are huge. I still, after all this time in the
U.S., can't get over how big they are compared to our dainty plump
English robins. The delicate wee nuthatches and chickadees look tiny
and sweet. One of my favourites is the woodpecker who lives in the
oak. He taps away on the tree and every so often, partakes of the
suet. Apparently they have a fondness for suet. He is beautiful...
simple coloring, black and white with a brilliant dash of red.
And
joining the crowd of entertainers is the large squirrel who also
lives in the oak. He can't get to the feeder, or doesn't try to, and
he doesn't bother with the birds but he knows he drives the cats
crazy. So he runs stomping his feet on the roof and then leaps along
the branches of the oak before wiggling his butt at the cats who
crouch down low in the attack position and chatter at him.
I
always feel better after I've spent some quiet time in our green
canopy. So I thought I'd tell you about it. And here's a photo I took
of part of it to post on Instagram last night as it soothed me. I
hope you all have a happy solitude place to go to when needed.
