Throughout the month of March, I am participating in the annual Slice of Life Story Challenge, an event hosted by the team at Two Writing Teachers. Every day in March, I will share a story and comment on the stories of other participants. Please join us in writing, sharing, reading, and commenting!
I don't know if anyone else has noticed this, but I feel like I've been coming across a lot of birds during the 2025 SOLSC. There have been birds making messes all over cars, birds as gifts, birdsongs, displaced birds, skittering sanderlings... a veritable text set. All of these posts have made me want to do more for our feathered friends.
It's a little tricky where I live. We live in the Connecticut town with the highest rate of bear sightings in the state-- an auspicious claim to fame. Given the town name of Simsbury, it gets dubbed Simsbeary by the local punners. We are not allowed to hand bird feeders in town, and if we do, they don't last long. Local bears sniff out fresh bird food right away.
After reading about bluebirds and spotting a few of them flitting in the back of our yard, I remembered the bluebird houses that have been in the back of the garage since last year.
"I have a couple of requests," I announced this morning in the company of Garth and Julia who is visiting for a couple of days. "The first one is can we get the bluebird houses back up in the back yard?"
The two of them both looked at me askance.
"You're joking, right?" Garth said.
"Absolutely not," Julia said.
"That's not happening," Garth said.
From upstairs, even Cecily, another visiting daughter, piped in. "We are not welcoming bluebirds!" she yelled from the stairs. "Don't you remember the mess of my car?"
"And what about the early morning obsessive banging on the windows?" Julia added.
"Alright, alright," I said.
They were right. The resident or maybe the non-resident bluebirds had some messy and loud habits that I repressed as I thought about the loveliness of welcoming birds. I guess I'll continue nurturing birds vicariously through many of the posts I read. Apologies to the neighborhood bluebirds.
At least the rug is changed in Julia's bedroom. That was my other request.
I also noticed all of the bird posts! I didn’t realize you had so many bears. Bluebirds are pesky. How about a nice birdbath? ❤️Jess
ReplyDeleteThe birds are the stars of this year's SOLC! Tomorrow I plan to write about the return of our owl!
ReplyDeleteAs much as I love watching birds, I would love to see some bears! I always enjoyed reading Tom Ryan's book about the bear that visited him and his dogs in New Hampshire - - Following Atticus was the name of it. They named the bear Aragorn, and it was delightful to hear about the visits. Glad you got the rug changed.
ReplyDeleteSend me a picture of the rug!!!!! Please.
ReplyDeleteMelanie,
ReplyDeleteYes, lots of bird posts this month, and not just from Fran Haley! I even wrote a bird post yesterday. It sounds as though you have some angry bluebirds from your past and angry family members in your present as you contemplate inviting the birds to hang around.
Yeah, you were turned down quick on that request. Sorry birds!
ReplyDeleteI am amused by the refusal of your family to welcome back bluebirds. :-) It reminds me of where I used to live in Middlefield--there was a huge hedge right outside my bedroom window where MANY robins liked to roost--and start singing before dawn. We loved having the birds there in theory, but it got tiresome after too many mornings of being woken up!
ReplyDeleteMelanie, what a great post! The introduction mentioning some of the bird posts you've read lately was great and helped us understand why you wanted to have your own bird sightings. Sims-BEAR-y! What a claim to fame.
ReplyDeleteI loved the conversation you record with Garth and Julia remembering what you had forgotten. "That's not happening" made me especially laugh. I'm glad the rug was changed at least.
I love the sound of bluebirds but didn't realise they can be a nuisance. I am definitely glad we don't have bears here, so they are not an issue! Your post was so much fun to read!
ReplyDelete