Rebecca, we feed our squirrels and doves and cardinals and blue jays, and, yes, a rat or two on occasion. We also name the squirrels - Lefty, Hoppy, Rudi - and feed them by hand if they'll let us. Charles calls them "tree rats" in MN, and he'd like to do an mri on Hoppy, as H, too, and all of his kin, are great acrobats. Somehow watching them through the big sliding glass door at each meal brings us closer to the inner world and gives us a break from "out there" beyond the boundaries of the backyard. Today we encouraged one who was about to leap from garage roof to chain link fence to be careful and to go down the ladder instead. Another young one scampered among the four-foot sunflowers that have randomly grown up in the yard from the seeds we throw, and I thought, "This must be for him what walking among the redwoods is for us." Jim agreed.
The tiny lessons of survival we see played out daily - sharing, aggression, courting, peaceful coexistence - give me hope. If we could only live life in this present, right-now, in-our-faces moment and trust that we know who made them and us and provides what we need. Love you, friend!
Carolyn, I can imagine how safe your squirrels feel and I can see you feeding them from your hand! Miss you, friend… I’ll be in Dallas a couple of times in the next few months - would love to find time for a visit!! Big hugs to you!
Kudos. We too have several squirrels occupying our backyard. They can be a pest at times finding ways to scale the suspended bird feeders to scavenge the birdseed. Other times they entertain as they dance limb to limb, tree to tree, chasing one another. Their frolicking is amusing, though we grumble in frustration when they purloin food meant for the birds.
As for us. Life used to be so much simpler. We got the news by reading a morning and/or evening newspaper, or catching what used to be a quick thirty minute broadcast at dinner time by trustworthy reporters named Cronkite, Brinkley, Huntley, Swayze, and Jennings. Weekly magazines added to our knowledge of national and world news, but otherwise we responded to the news far differently than we do today. Today we are inundated with information and opinions about the news. Cable news expanded the televised news into a competition for viewers. Now we have the internet filled with podcasts, social media, and worldwide access to opinions about the same basic facts that twist the facts into a myriad of perspectives. Our world today suffers from TMI about the actual news. We should reconsider the life of the squirrels and not worry about each day. We should take life a little less serious. We should worry less about what the squirrels are doing in the neighbors yards or in the woods far away. TMI causes stress and it makes us too smart for our own good. Gee, I only wish we could go back to "just the facts" about the news and not fight over opinions that divide us. When we take the time to open our hearts and eyes, there's far more that binds us than divides us. At least that's what the squirrels in my yard say to each other.
When my backyard squirrels killed baby birds by foraging in their nest--babies I'd watched and protected for days-- I decide to avenge their little bird souls by shooting the squirrels with a BB gun. I stomped outside armed, only to see two of them playfully chasing each other up and down a tree. I couldn't do it. Life lessons from squirrels indeed. Thank you.
OMG, the image in my head of you, stomping with a bb gun, muttering about the blame squirrels.... and then going soft .... LOVE this, and love you, my friend!!
You have such a way with words! Thank you so much for sharing them with us. ❤️
Aw, thank you, friend! How are you and your sweet family?
Rebecca, we feed our squirrels and doves and cardinals and blue jays, and, yes, a rat or two on occasion. We also name the squirrels - Lefty, Hoppy, Rudi - and feed them by hand if they'll let us. Charles calls them "tree rats" in MN, and he'd like to do an mri on Hoppy, as H, too, and all of his kin, are great acrobats. Somehow watching them through the big sliding glass door at each meal brings us closer to the inner world and gives us a break from "out there" beyond the boundaries of the backyard. Today we encouraged one who was about to leap from garage roof to chain link fence to be careful and to go down the ladder instead. Another young one scampered among the four-foot sunflowers that have randomly grown up in the yard from the seeds we throw, and I thought, "This must be for him what walking among the redwoods is for us." Jim agreed.
The tiny lessons of survival we see played out daily - sharing, aggression, courting, peaceful coexistence - give me hope. If we could only live life in this present, right-now, in-our-faces moment and trust that we know who made them and us and provides what we need. Love you, friend!
Carolyn, I can imagine how safe your squirrels feel and I can see you feeding them from your hand! Miss you, friend… I’ll be in Dallas a couple of times in the next few months - would love to find time for a visit!! Big hugs to you!
Kudos. We too have several squirrels occupying our backyard. They can be a pest at times finding ways to scale the suspended bird feeders to scavenge the birdseed. Other times they entertain as they dance limb to limb, tree to tree, chasing one another. Their frolicking is amusing, though we grumble in frustration when they purloin food meant for the birds.
As for us. Life used to be so much simpler. We got the news by reading a morning and/or evening newspaper, or catching what used to be a quick thirty minute broadcast at dinner time by trustworthy reporters named Cronkite, Brinkley, Huntley, Swayze, and Jennings. Weekly magazines added to our knowledge of national and world news, but otherwise we responded to the news far differently than we do today. Today we are inundated with information and opinions about the news. Cable news expanded the televised news into a competition for viewers. Now we have the internet filled with podcasts, social media, and worldwide access to opinions about the same basic facts that twist the facts into a myriad of perspectives. Our world today suffers from TMI about the actual news. We should reconsider the life of the squirrels and not worry about each day. We should take life a little less serious. We should worry less about what the squirrels are doing in the neighbors yards or in the woods far away. TMI causes stress and it makes us too smart for our own good. Gee, I only wish we could go back to "just the facts" about the news and not fight over opinions that divide us. When we take the time to open our hearts and eyes, there's far more that binds us than divides us. At least that's what the squirrels in my yard say to each other.
When my backyard squirrels killed baby birds by foraging in their nest--babies I'd watched and protected for days-- I decide to avenge their little bird souls by shooting the squirrels with a BB gun. I stomped outside armed, only to see two of them playfully chasing each other up and down a tree. I couldn't do it. Life lessons from squirrels indeed. Thank you.
OMG, the image in my head of you, stomping with a bb gun, muttering about the blame squirrels.... and then going soft .... LOVE this, and love you, my friend!!
That poem is profound!
Isn't it? I've read it over and over, it's so powerful.
LOVE IT!