Such a wonderful post! Suddenly I’m daydreaming about my childhood. Sparrows always remind me about the summer vacations in my grandmother’s home in a small village in the countryside. Early in the morning and by sunset, flocks of sparrows gathered in the rooftops of the little houses in town. Swallows remind me the beginning of spring and the end of summer (and the beginning of school when I was a child). I was afraid of seagulls. For a child, they’re very big birds! I remember the adults saying seagulls ashore, storm at sea. And I remember in the winter watching flocks of goldfinches. They’re so colorful!
Having moved to Virginia from Colorado after 20 years in the Rockies I've been greeted by so many of the birds that I knew as a child growing up in the east. Cardinals in particular and also the wonderful Mourning Dove and Mockingbird. Songbirds were rare in the part of Colorado where I lived so it's been a welcome cacophony.
As a child, I loved birds: robins, cardinals, blue jays, chickadees, mourning doves, red-wing blackbirds, goldfinches, cedar wax wings, and crows (I adore crows!). I've always had a copy of Peterson's nearby and studied it for hours to learn about them. As an adult with a nice little plot of land in the country, I have so many birds visiting the feeders, and I love listening to their songs. We even have Ravens! The beauty of the New York State bird, the Bluebird, is stunning! I've been enjoying watching the parents feeding their fledglings that they've hidden in the trees and bushes around our property. Last night they had them in the Wisdom Tree, where I love to go sit in the evenings to drink a glass of wine, but they fiercely objected to my being there, especially because my kitty, Harper Lee, was there with me. They will grow up fast and be fending for themselves; soon enough, I'll have my tree back! We have a variety of woodpeckers and sparrows too. The hummingbirds squabble over their feeder and the bee balm in my garden. I love hearing the whistle of the Eastern Towhee; it is one of the birds I look forward to hearing in the early spring, and the Bobolinks are always the last ones to arrive in the spring migration. Our climate has changed so much; there are robins that no longer migrate south; I've noticed this for well over a decade, and it's so strange to see them in the middle of winter, quietly tut-tutting, foraging, and sheltering in our pine trees. Birds are wonderful creatures, and I feel so blessed to have them visit my garden!
I love birds, and so reading your post brings me joy and smiles of recognition for my own love of birds.
Actually, there have been several times in my life, after having lost close loved ones, that I believe their spirits came to comfort me and reassure me that they were ok, and that they were always close at hand.
The first time was when I lost my father, who died suddenly and unexpectedly. Almost exactly a month after he died, this pigeon!, appeared outside the window of the apartment building I lived in , a place where no birds had previously ever been seen, and it just hung around for like 4 days, outside of my window, occasionally peering in. Somehow I just knew it was trying to tell me something and I thought immediately of my dad, of his own need to say goodbye to me and to tell me that he’ll always be watching over me.
Another time, after the death of a close friend, I was sitting out at night in my yard, thinking of him when I heard close by in one of the trees the sound of a screech owl. My friend had always identified with owls and saw them as his “totem” animal. I took great comfort in that moment knowing my friend was also ok, was close by, and alive in a way I could only begin to imagine.
The screech of Swifts wizzing above is the official sound of the year’s entry into warm weather, to my childhood ear. When I was little the sound of birdsong was just one noise, like a song, rather than the many songs that my adult ear can identify. Owls, calling in the night, were always the exception. 🪶
Funny you should mention birds, yesterday looking out my front window i saw 2 galahs on the roof of my carport, which was very unusual bc we mainly get Magpies. Took a picture, then after a few minutes a magpie turned up to chase them away, which is par for the course for them, theyr’re very territorial . Pictures are on my instagram page, its private but I’ll let you in to see if you like😊i live in a Bayside suburb & when we go to get takeaway food from the shops they cover them so seagulls cant swoop down and steal your food. And when you sit down to eat they sit there like puppies waiting for you to feed them😂
Robins were my favorite bird as a child. While living in the woods of NW WI I had many birds at my feeder. tufted titmouse, red breasted nuthatches, chickadees of course, purple finches and evening grosbeaks. Purple grosbeaks as well. On one day on a walk there was a scarlet tanager. Now I sit outside with my Merlin app and listen to chickadees, blue jays, cardinals, red winged blackbirds and flickers with rare bluebirds on occasion.
Another wonderful post; I enjoyed this! Thank you. And such great comments!
My childhood birds are gulls, ibises, terns, pelicans, egrets and herons. My current most exciting bird is an Eastern Screech Owl who moved into a saw palm abandoned by woodpeckers. The owl waits until sunset is just past its peak and then stations itself on the tallest tree in our yard. Since the owl came, all of the squirrels are gone and the neighborhood stray cats are thinner, but much friendlier.
The Merlin app has helped me quiet my mind and learn bird calls, I find myself out in my backyard (in SE Michigan) most mornings and evenings. I love the call of cardinals. I have been seeing lots of various fledglings around, with a parent or two teaching them, feeding them. I just read Amy Tan’s Backyard Bird Chronicles and I cannot recommend enough ❤️
I've been making friends with a neighborhood crow for a few weeks, now. He's still a bit skittish, but if I can get a pic of him - probably while he's scarfing down my offering of peanuts - I'll pass it along. He's big and beautiful.
Your posts are always so lovely and lush. Such a gentle sound for Saturday.
My childhood birds are the robin, red-wing blackbird, blackbird, sparrow, and, of course my state bird cardinal. I also would see blue jays on occasion.
During the Covid lockdown, a mourning dove built a nest on the house next to my condo building. She laid three eggs. I wrote about in my journal. To my disappointment, the eggs were not viable and the mother never returned.
I can really understand that. I live in an apartment on a high floor and for the months of lockdown, the thing I most missed was birds, and birdsong. I hope you have many birds around you now.
When I was a kid, I often lived in apartments and heard mostly captive birds (parakeets). But later, I lived in different urban environments, some with backyards. So then I heard mourning doves, bluejays, mockingbirds, wild parrots, and crows. And of course many of us noticed these sounds more during the lockdown. By the way, another great website for bird sounds is Xeno-Canto, where people capture bird sounds, tag them, and share them.
One of my most favorite sounds is that of the Mourning Dove - I live in Michigan too and hear them a lot. You’re right about their sound, sad and beautiful. I love waking to their song.
Such a wonderful post! Suddenly I’m daydreaming about my childhood. Sparrows always remind me about the summer vacations in my grandmother’s home in a small village in the countryside. Early in the morning and by sunset, flocks of sparrows gathered in the rooftops of the little houses in town. Swallows remind me the beginning of spring and the end of summer (and the beginning of school when I was a child). I was afraid of seagulls. For a child, they’re very big birds! I remember the adults saying seagulls ashore, storm at sea. And I remember in the winter watching flocks of goldfinches. They’re so colorful!
Having moved to Virginia from Colorado after 20 years in the Rockies I've been greeted by so many of the birds that I knew as a child growing up in the east. Cardinals in particular and also the wonderful Mourning Dove and Mockingbird. Songbirds were rare in the part of Colorado where I lived so it's been a welcome cacophony.
As a child, I loved birds: robins, cardinals, blue jays, chickadees, mourning doves, red-wing blackbirds, goldfinches, cedar wax wings, and crows (I adore crows!). I've always had a copy of Peterson's nearby and studied it for hours to learn about them. As an adult with a nice little plot of land in the country, I have so many birds visiting the feeders, and I love listening to their songs. We even have Ravens! The beauty of the New York State bird, the Bluebird, is stunning! I've been enjoying watching the parents feeding their fledglings that they've hidden in the trees and bushes around our property. Last night they had them in the Wisdom Tree, where I love to go sit in the evenings to drink a glass of wine, but they fiercely objected to my being there, especially because my kitty, Harper Lee, was there with me. They will grow up fast and be fending for themselves; soon enough, I'll have my tree back! We have a variety of woodpeckers and sparrows too. The hummingbirds squabble over their feeder and the bee balm in my garden. I love hearing the whistle of the Eastern Towhee; it is one of the birds I look forward to hearing in the early spring, and the Bobolinks are always the last ones to arrive in the spring migration. Our climate has changed so much; there are robins that no longer migrate south; I've noticed this for well over a decade, and it's so strange to see them in the middle of winter, quietly tut-tutting, foraging, and sheltering in our pine trees. Birds are wonderful creatures, and I feel so blessed to have them visit my garden!
I love birds, and so reading your post brings me joy and smiles of recognition for my own love of birds.
Actually, there have been several times in my life, after having lost close loved ones, that I believe their spirits came to comfort me and reassure me that they were ok, and that they were always close at hand.
The first time was when I lost my father, who died suddenly and unexpectedly. Almost exactly a month after he died, this pigeon!, appeared outside the window of the apartment building I lived in , a place where no birds had previously ever been seen, and it just hung around for like 4 days, outside of my window, occasionally peering in. Somehow I just knew it was trying to tell me something and I thought immediately of my dad, of his own need to say goodbye to me and to tell me that he’ll always be watching over me.
Another time, after the death of a close friend, I was sitting out at night in my yard, thinking of him when I heard close by in one of the trees the sound of a screech owl. My friend had always identified with owls and saw them as his “totem” animal. I took great comfort in that moment knowing my friend was also ok, was close by, and alive in a way I could only begin to imagine.
The screech of Swifts wizzing above is the official sound of the year’s entry into warm weather, to my childhood ear. When I was little the sound of birdsong was just one noise, like a song, rather than the many songs that my adult ear can identify. Owls, calling in the night, were always the exception. 🪶
Funny you should mention birds, yesterday looking out my front window i saw 2 galahs on the roof of my carport, which was very unusual bc we mainly get Magpies. Took a picture, then after a few minutes a magpie turned up to chase them away, which is par for the course for them, theyr’re very territorial . Pictures are on my instagram page, its private but I’ll let you in to see if you like😊i live in a Bayside suburb & when we go to get takeaway food from the shops they cover them so seagulls cant swoop down and steal your food. And when you sit down to eat they sit there like puppies waiting for you to feed them😂
Robins were my favorite bird as a child. While living in the woods of NW WI I had many birds at my feeder. tufted titmouse, red breasted nuthatches, chickadees of course, purple finches and evening grosbeaks. Purple grosbeaks as well. On one day on a walk there was a scarlet tanager. Now I sit outside with my Merlin app and listen to chickadees, blue jays, cardinals, red winged blackbirds and flickers with rare bluebirds on occasion.
Another wonderful post; I enjoyed this! Thank you. And such great comments!
My childhood birds are gulls, ibises, terns, pelicans, egrets and herons. My current most exciting bird is an Eastern Screech Owl who moved into a saw palm abandoned by woodpeckers. The owl waits until sunset is just past its peak and then stations itself on the tallest tree in our yard. Since the owl came, all of the squirrels are gone and the neighborhood stray cats are thinner, but much friendlier.
The Merlin app has helped me quiet my mind and learn bird calls, I find myself out in my backyard (in SE Michigan) most mornings and evenings. I love the call of cardinals. I have been seeing lots of various fledglings around, with a parent or two teaching them, feeding them. I just read Amy Tan’s Backyard Bird Chronicles and I cannot recommend enough ❤️
Such a great book!
Incredible app! So much fun. Love this and your perspective. Just fabulous. A high point in my day.
I've been making friends with a neighborhood crow for a few weeks, now. He's still a bit skittish, but if I can get a pic of him - probably while he's scarfing down my offering of peanuts - I'll pass it along. He's big and beautiful.
I love this post, Jessie. Birds are messengers of spirit to me when I’m paying attention .
Yes!
Your posts are always so lovely and lush. Such a gentle sound for Saturday.
My childhood birds are the robin, red-wing blackbird, blackbird, sparrow, and, of course my state bird cardinal. I also would see blue jays on occasion.
During the Covid lockdown, a mourning dove built a nest on the house next to my condo building. She laid three eggs. I wrote about in my journal. To my disappointment, the eggs were not viable and the mother never returned.
I’m sorry the mother never returned.
Me too. I was so sad. She was the one bright spot during the early days of the pandemic and lockdown.
I can really understand that. I live in an apartment on a high floor and for the months of lockdown, the thing I most missed was birds, and birdsong. I hope you have many birds around you now.
We do and lots of squirrels too. I.live in Chicago but am near two parks and the Chicago River.
love this so much! birds are a blessing. their songs comfort and inspire. thank you.
When I was a kid, I often lived in apartments and heard mostly captive birds (parakeets). But later, I lived in different urban environments, some with backyards. So then I heard mourning doves, bluejays, mockingbirds, wild parrots, and crows. And of course many of us noticed these sounds more during the lockdown. By the way, another great website for bird sounds is Xeno-Canto, where people capture bird sounds, tag them, and share them.
One of my most favorite sounds is that of the Mourning Dove - I live in Michigan too and hear them a lot. You’re right about their sound, sad and beautiful. I love waking to their song.