Listening to Birds

Day 12 Listening to Birds

We had a brief glimpse of spring this week, with temperatures in my ideal zone of 50’s to 70’s. Ah… My favorite season is usually spring. It was my parents’ favorite, too. We would talk about what plant peeked through the dirt, when we saw trees bud, and most importantly, when the majority of the birds came back. My parents loved bird watching from their backyard. They were lucky enough to have woods & lots of trees where they lived for much of their lives. My first bird book was given to me by them. They had their own books and a pair of binoculars at hand.

I wish my parents could have sat on the porch of my current house in the spring. We have the noisiest birds in my neighborhood! Last spring I modelled informational writing on the Northern Mockingbird as we have at least two or three that live around here. I missed them and heard them for the first time yesterday.

This spring will be harder than most, with the exception of LAST spring. Nothing can top that. But this  spring I face the following events, some of which are wonderful, and some heartbreaking. 

• All three of my boys’ birthdays – for them I am truly grateful.
• My mother’s birthday (She died in 2018.)
• The one year anniversary of my father’s death (Not from Covid, but Covid made it so, so much harder.)
• My parents’ anniversary (They celebrated a total of 53 years together.)
• The anniversary of the loss of a cousin to suicide 

My husband also has loss “anniversaries” in the spring.

So I need warmer weather here to stay so I can sit outside, listen to the birds, and remember with smiles as well as tears.

#SOLSC21