This little buddy landed on my shoulder one morning, and I was surprised he stayed long enough to snap a picture. He seemed content and not afraid as I kept real still. It felt good and I liked having him there and the connection no matter how fleeting. Makes me wish I could hold onto the moment longer.
Those times are precious to me as they are happening now and as I look back on them. But isn’t that how life is – unpredictable? We never know how each day will unfold. It’s a gift – all of it, the good and the bad, and as I get older, I’m even more conscious of that. It’s a choice really, how we see it and respond. And as I look at this picture, I’m reminded how much there is to still see and enjoy right there in front of my eyes.
I’m glad there are stages in life and it’s funny, as I look at old pictures over time. You would think we were different people as little girls and boys, compared to our teens and 20’s, mid-life, and (if fortunate) the golden years. Birds don’t change as dramatically as that, nor other wildlife, that I know of. If they get older, there’s a change but not where they look so different that you wouldn’t recognize them. Maybe it’s because they’re not as protected when enduring the elements, and most don’t live as long.
I remember I could feel this little guy’s feet as he moved and shifted. He was close enough to where I could see his face as he twitched his head back and forth. Maybe, he was somewhat puzzled by this big object near him. Then, he finally flew off. So tiny, delicate and light as a feather. I marvel how they take off in flight without hardly any effort. Wouldn’t it be fun to launch and fly like that?
Hubby and I watch all types of fowl, insects and critters in our backyard, and it gives me appreciation of life and its different forms. We don’t see all the makings of it on the ground and in the sky – the intricacies and interactions. Only a small portion of it as they enter our world. What does their home look like perched up in a tree or under a bush? What do we look like to them? Do they feel things like we do or is it us trying to apply human emotions? Some things must be similar as they care for their young and compete for territory like we do. But on a different vibration? I have no idea but it’s beautiful with what I do see.
I look forward to more moments like that. You never know what each day will reveal. Maybe another little buddy will come to visit again. I hope so.
Just living this life every day is like rowing a boat. Sometimes you have calm waters and other times it’s turbulent. I think it’s always been that way down through the years. Each generation has had their own set of waters to traverse depending on whether you have a destination or not. Maybe, you just want to sit there in your boat and be still in calm waters. There are times when that’s all you need.
Hubby and I got into a conversation yesterday morning after watching the CBS News Sunday Morning show. There were a couple of interviews the journalists facilitated that prompted our discussion. Like before, there are many of these instances when we watch or read something that prompt our talks, and this one was no different. But seemed like after our talk I wasn’t finished with it yet and more thoughts and ideas kept running through my head and heart. So, here I am sharing them with you and by no means have I arrived at any kind of conclusion. It’s just thoughts and questions I was pondering. Some of those“What If’s”, I talked about in an earlier post.
One of these interviews was with the retiring Smithsonian head, and the other interview was with a Democratic Kentucky Governor, hopeful to be running for the presidency. When asked difficult questions, both had good answers, from my perspective, and it’s what prompted the discussion hubby and I had.
We’re all good at pointing out the good things we like and especially the others we don’t like. But, if it’s different and we don’t like it, we’re also good at giving our opinions on how wrong it is. Even to the degree of being downright dismissive or sometimes demeaning. Then we justify it as passion.
The discussion hubby and I got into was: “why do we always have to point out what we agree or disagree with when others say and do something different we don’t like?” Why does there have to be one side or the other and make judgments on that, as if we’re excused when we think someone is doing something much worse than what we do?
And – this is where my mind kicks in with questions and starts pondering – “aren’t we all accountable for our thoughts and actions – or is that just reserved for the person who is different?” What’s good and what’s bad if everything is one? Don’t we need the contrast of good or bad, black and white, to see where we need to go, where to row our boat? Even when you row a boat, you need the resistance to get you moving. Why does different, negative or positive, have to be bad or good and just be a part of the whole?
Now, I understand there’s an extreme for which you have to make distinctions on what is harmful or not. Sometimes the dark is dangerous, and the light can be so bright it’s blinding and you can’t see. But when that’s the case, it’s up to me to move away and position myself in a better place.
I guess what I’m trying to realize here is that differences are needed, even important, and when we feel threatened by them, maybe what’s needed is to recognize that we feel uncomfortable and try to understand. We don’t need to make everyone think like we want or be the same because it would make our life easier. It’s the differences that create flavor and beauty – salt and pepper, woven tapestries.
Maybe, the reason it gets more difficult to understand is it’s to make us dig deeper and look in another place for answers. We can both be different and still coexist together – in fact, maybe that’s what we’re supposed to learn how to do. I know you need cooperation to do that, but it needs to start somewhere. Allowing ourselves to be a living piece of art floating up and around melting together, flowing with each other being more dark one time and lighter at other times in constant change. (Sounds crazy – huh?)
As you can see, I’m still pondering these things and makes me wonder why it’s so hard to get along with one another, especially when there’s opposition. I think when we run into problems is because we try to make others do as we like and believe like we want.
We’re complicated beings and make it so difficult to live in harmony not just with ourselves but with other beings as well. Just beat each other into conformity is the illusion we have that it will make everything in the world a much better place. I would venture to guess that if we ever accomplished that, it would still not be enough, as our egos would still need to be fed and want more.
Whatever it is, we’re all in this together no matter how you look at it, and I don’t believe we’ll get out of this without our own personal day of reckoning where our soul is compromised, and we have to make hard decisions. Like a mother finding herself pregnant with another child, she’s unable to feed, or a new VIP instructed to give orders to move ahead on projects he never thought he’d sign up for. Your head is demanding you to do one thing, and your heart is quietly urging you to do something else. I guess, then, it would be easier to understand when we witness what someone else is going through on the reckoning of their circumstances.
So, here I am, out here just rowing my boat (and venting a little). Sometimes I’m still and in neutral waters and other times I’m rowing like crazy to some distant shore. I’ll let you know if I arrive or not – but, could it be, that it’s not the destination so much as it’s the journey? If you’re still with me, thank you for letting me pen my thoughts, crazy ideas, hopes and dreams.
What you see is not always what you think . . . sometimes there’s more. Do you ever wonder about that and what’s out there you missed by not being in the right place at the right time or just not being aware? It’s like we’re zigging and life is zagging. This picture makes me think about how much goes on all around me I don’t see, yet life goes on?
Hubby took this picture as it was getting dusk one evening, and the light was not good; so, he adjusted the camera settings for the shot so it would be lighter. And, lo and behold, there was more going on than he realized and surprised to see what was happening.
It began with him just wondering if the bird he saw on the birdhouse was a bluebird or not and couldn’t tell because it was getting dark. He didn’t expect to see in the shot another bird that seemed to be falling from the sky while the bluebird watched. There were no dead birds under that tree as we took our daily walk the next day so maybe it was doing something else – I don’t know – but it’s curious.
I want to believe it was something other than a strike from a predator, and some research indicates it’s possible it was a maneuver to avoid a predator (like whiffling), an attempt to attract a mate, disorientation or a fledgling mishap. Whatever, the reason, we had never seen anything like that maybe because it happens so fast and hubby just happened to catch it on camera.
So much goes on around us all the time, and it seems like we have no clue. There’s a popular riddle I’m sure you’ve heard, “If a tree falls in a forest and no one is there, does it make a sound?” My thinking is, “Yes”, and it’s because things don’t need us to hear it for it to happen. It is what it is, whether we’re there to witness it or not. I think there are a lot of events, mysteries, unexplained phenomena like that happening all the time and then it passes. No explanations, opinions, or questions. Unlike us, it doesn’t need one; it just happens and needs nothing else.
It’s wonderful and beautiful how life keeps moving, shifting and changing – some things in the most dynamic way and others so tiny it’s hard to even detect. Life and death are in a dance all around us in constant rhythm and harmony and we’re a part of it.
What do you think? Have you seen things like this or wonder what’s out there and the mystery of it or is it something that’s not even on your radar? It’s living life and I’m grateful to be a part of it.
I had one of the most unthinkable things happen to me today. I lost my wedding ring. I was working in the yard, pulling weeds, when I felt it was missing from my finger. It’s a naked feeling after almost 60 years of marriage this December. A sinking in my heart and a sick feeling in my gut.
As I’ve worn it throughout the years, I’ve sometimes put it away in my jewelry box, because it was too tight. I even had it resized one time and now, in going through better eating habits, health improvement and losing weight, it got real loose.
So, I began retracing my steps and thought I could use a magnet (but turns out a magnet does not attract silver). Hubby came out to help, and we both were combing the yard. And Thank you! Thank you! – he found it! It was in the container of weeds I last pulled.
My Wedding Ring is Back
I don’t remember how many times he has come through for me over the last 60 years, finding things I’ve lost, recovering me from things I’ve gotten myself into that I can’t get out of; he’s even saved my life 2 times (literally). There’s never been a dull moment, and it’s been quite an adventure living with me. Guess you could say I keep him on his toes.
Oh, the stories and what will I come home with this time. From catching the oscillating sprinkler to the bottom of our van and continuing to back out of the driveway, stretching it to its limit, while it was still attached to the house. To coming home and having to explain why the vent on top of the van was gone and how that happened. And another time, when I called to tell him my fob had just plopped into the lake (that time he used the magnet on a long pole).
I’ve told some of these stories right here in some of my posts over the years. And in the retelling of them, I still can’t understand how they could have happened, but they did. Just like losing my wedding band today. Now, that was devastating and would have been hard for me to get over, if he hadn’t found it.
So, here we are – another day in the life of an aging couple, helping each other, loving each other and enjoying these golden years together in a beautiful mystical place. Wonder what tomorrow will bring. Ah, it’s a mystery – what will unfold and reveal itself to us, as we journey on this path together one day and one step at a time.
Thank you for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed the read and it tickled your heart and warmed your soul.
Looks like the perfect spot – what a view! We would often take rides up in the mountains, not far from our home and especially in the Fall, to see the aspens change. This was on one of those rides years ago when hubby got this shot. It stands out amidst the surrounding beauty and in its own way fits in.
That lone camper, how long has it been there? Does a hunter own it and use it, as a type of command post while he’s out for the day hiking all over the mountain? So many questions and none matter, really. It’s serving its purpose, and wonder how many critters have passed by and checked it out? What were the storms like that passed through – blowing, thundering, and lightning? How many stars shot through the sky in the heavens above? I’ll bet it’s been a stunning display of nature as it sits there all alone.
The aspens are beautiful in the Fall, and we would drive up and explore. It would feel like you’re in another world captured by their bright, shimmering beauty. Nature was giving its last hurrah before it would settle in and go to sleep for the winter.
Their leaves would gently waver and quiver, as if winking at you as they catch the light in a golden glow. It can take your breath away at their beauty in the crisp, cold mountain air. And, if you’re lucky enough, as you hike on the mountain trails, you may catch a glimpse of a moose or hear the distant sound of an elk bugling.
A number of years ago, we went on one of those drives in the summer, and I recorded it. Maybe you’d like to take a ride with hubby, Abby and me as we explore these Rocky Mountains, our home.
Thank you for stopping by and sharing these moments with me. It’s getting to be that time of the year again when seasons change as we bring our world to you, and I hope it brings joy to your heart.
