Feast On Your Life
Audrey, Sienna, and Cora enjoying bird kisses
"Birds know themselves not to be at the center of anything but at the margins of everything—the end of the map. We only live where someone's horizon sweeps someone else's. We are only noticed on the edge of things, but on the edge of things, we notice much." ― Gregory Maguire
I'm lying in my room listening to the birds outside.
Who knows where we get our faulty assumptions, but I've always thought that birds tweet or chirp because they are happy creatures, and on some level, I've harbored this illusion that they were created for my personal enjoyment. I know. That is a horribly self-centered of me, but if I were to make something that both delighted and charmed the sapiens, I would make something that had soft feathers, could chirp a sweet tune, and soar through the skies as if hope.
We call it a bird. I think birds are magical, and the fact that they can do things that I only dream about captivates me to no end.
Birds have the unique ability to fly away from it all. You know what I mean? They can drop in on our world, hop around, and when they feel threatened, they take off. Hide out in a tree or on a rooftop, maybe become a squatter in an abandoned birdhouse. If they don't like the weather, they migrate, landing in a place that is warm and bountiful. And all the while, they are singing their song, and you have to believe this is because they know they are free.
When I was growing up, my mother was an avid bird lover, and I suppose, in some way, I adopted her affection for our feathered friends. She always had a bird feeder or two in the yard, and if she were traveling, she would pay someone to feed her birds as if they were beloved pets.
My fascination with birds has stayed with me through the years; in fact, I think it has grown, which means birdbaths, feeders, and mini birdhouses will always be part of our backyard decor.
The one that captured my heart early on is the crow; they're such intelligent birds. They have the capacity to memorize garbage schedules, they like to congregate in large numbers and sleep in communal roosts. Is that too sweet? Some roosts have been forming in the same general area for well over 100 years. They know how to detect kindness in humans, and they'll remember your face when you smile at them. In fact, the crow is the mascot for my blog and is displayed prominently on my business cards. I realize this is odd, but I own it because it is true.
It appears my twin granddaughters, Cora and Sienna, have the same love for the birds as their Grammie. They begged their parents to throw them a bird-day party. So what can you do when two adorable girls want a bird-day party? You hire Happy Birds, that's what.
Julie and Nic set out delicious appetizers and invited half the neighborhood over for the afternoon. The Happy Bird team showed up with two preppy trainers and six exotic parrots.
Gordon riding a bike
The first of whom was named Marty, a talented Triton Cockatoo, and then there was Gordon, a Hyacinth Macaw, who can open a beer bottle with his beak. Forrest is a beautiful Green Winged Macaw, and his favorite food is a Brazil nut. Floyd is a rare Blue-throated Macaw who is extremely intelligent and loves to flirt. Yah-Kee is a Yellow-naped Amazon who was raised by an elderly lady who taught her to sing! And then there's Korbel, a Yellow-naped Amazon who loves baths!
Now, these are huge birds, brightly colored, with intense eyes that draw you in as if a hypnotist. They set each of them on its own perch and then brought them out one at a time to entertain the kids. The adults were just as impressed, maybe more so, especially with Gordon.
Cora, Audrey, and Sienna staring in the bird show
As you can imagine, the show was a hit. Those darling birds performed tricks, sang songs, kissed the twins, and posed with anyone brave enough to hold out their arms and smile. I think there'll be a lot of bird-day parties in the neighborhood for the next year or two.
I also found out what birds are really doing when they tweet. They're showing off. I'm not kidding. It turns out birds are rather vain, and when they're looking for love, the songs are a form of flirtation. I get it. I'm highly attracted to those little tweets. Interestingly, unlike humans, birds tend to mate for life.
Think about what it would be like to be a creature that had to fly to eat, and most days, the only thing on the menu is worms or road kill. I don't know about you, but this makes me appreciate things like aged cheese, grilled salmon, and dark chocolate with a hint of sea salt.
My niece Mackenzie and I hanging with the birds
When I try and imagine the world from a bird's perspective, all I can think about is how objects must seem so large compared to their small bodies or how conveniently the trees seem to be placed in most neighborhoods. How the crisscross of wires that outline our communities has become a nice place to congregate and keep an eye on the humans barbequing in the yard. The world must seem as if it moves in slow motion compared to the speed and agility of birds. If I were a bird, I think I would make it a practice to follow the children around because who tend to drop more food than they eat.
Now, if that wasn't enough to make it an extraordinary week, we also had a particle eclipse to enjoy. So there we are, gathered as if a flock of birds in the neighbor's driveway, waiting for the much-anticipated event. Debbie and Ron thought to purchase a bunch of those special glasses and handed them out like party favors and we witnessed the two most significant objects in our universe cross paths. It was epic in my opinion!
Watching the solar eclipse with a gaggle of neighbors
We live in a world of extreme opposites, a place that is both beautiful and dangerous. If you were to look at the sun without those special glasses, you would go blind. That's sort of extreme. Our world is as old as time, and yet every day is brand new to us. It is both big and small, depending on your perspective. It is as violent as it is gentle, liquid and solid, angry and kind. But here we are, for this brief moment in time, free to explore the endless possibilities available to us each and every day.
I say feast on your life, dive in, be a scavenger for joy.
"Did you know that birds do not land because they're tired? It is a remembrance. They know and have always known that their liberation depends on their ability to recall the ground." ― Cole Arthur Riley
I'm Living in the Gap, listening to the birds, love to hear your thoughts.
Dante giving the birds a little love.
If you have a chance, please listen to my recent podcast on Sharing the Heart of the Matter with Wynne Leon and Dr. Victoria Atkinson.
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