Feathered friends...

When we were getting ready to move from Memphis to Maine we looked at what felt like thousands of houses on line. One that I really liked had several nice things about it, but the most enchanting thing for me was that the real estate advertisement boasted that the place was a bird sanctuary. That house didn't work out for us, but I always wondered about those birds. Did the new owners continue to offer them a safe haven?

The first weekend we moved into this house, I bought a bird feeder and was delighted when Goldfinches arrived within moments of installing it, little shards of sunlight twittering through the air and dining happily just outside my kitchen window. It seemed an auspicious omen.

Fast forward 11 years and it occurs to me now that we have created a bit of a sanctuary right here at FairWinds.



I put a feeder just outside the window of my grooming studio. I cannot find the words to express the pleasure I get from watching the birds while I groom. They are mere inches from my nose. In this frigid weather we've been having the birds have been staying close to the feeders, and emptying them at an astonishing rate. I don't care. I fill the feeders happily and thrill at the whirl of feathers all around me. From the tiny Chickadees to the delicious looking turkeys...



... they keep me lovely company during the day.


Yesterday, while perched on my favorite seat in the house, something caught my eye outside the living room window. The tree branches are dotted with white snow, and I thought I saw some snow move. And there was a dark mass under it. I looked closer and lo and behold... a Bald Eagle was perched at the edge of the meadow. I think it was hoping a chicken would appear, but the hens were staying put in their cozy coop.



The Eagle stayed a while, surveying our property from a sturdy branch. And then some crows began to hassle it. It lifted off and flapped into the icy sky.



I rather like living in a bird sanctuary.