Ruby Throated Hummingbird

Smooth Sailing is about so much more than getting in a boat a floating down a river or on a lake.  It is about keeping an even keel in all things, especially when times get rough.  I've always thought it was essential to practice that during good times as well.  One of the easiest ways I find to do that is to look for beauty. 


Today I had the privilege of seeing a ruby throated hummingbird.  I spotted it first at the feeder I have at the edge of the porch.  It was flying away as I turned around.  I heard its wings, which was what made me turn around to begin with.  I spotted the branch it landed on and went inside to get the binoculars.  It seemed a bit strange to use binoculars to look at a tree branch less than 20 feet from the window.  I focused in on him and watched as he sat on his branch.  First I admired the bright green of his back.  Each feather was like a scale on a tropical fish.  He turned his head slightly at one point and I saw the vibrant red of his throat.  It was startling enough to make me gasp out loud.  He flew back over to the feeder at that point.  Unfortunately, he landed on the edge of the feeder opposite of the window, however, I could at one point see his long beak sticking out to the side, and his little tongue flicking in and out. 


It was a lovely experience.  It is often these little moments that give me the most pleasure and joy.  There really is nothing better than reveling in the simply beauty of these little things.  There is no price that could be place on them, and no amount of money that could buy anything equivilent.  Wealthy people can buy plenty of land, have professionally planted gardens etc., but nothing quite compares to seeing it in the wild with minimal influence. 

Baby Bear

A few afternoons ago I was sitting at the dining room table working on a project.  Something caught my eye and I looked up.  I saw the furry black back legs of something walking past the window.  Based on the quick glance I had, I thought it was a dog of some kind, maybe a labradoodle.  It was more furry than a hound.  We get a lot of wandering dogs in this area, so I didn't really think anything else of it.  I got up and went to the window, wanting to see the new dog that had come by.  When I got to the window, instead of seeing the expected dog I saw a small black bear!  I would call it a baby, though it was not a new born.  I would guess based on its size that it was a yearling, or close to.  It turned the corner to the back of the house around the porch.  Unfortunately, there are no windows on that side of the house, so I went around to the back deck, not being certain of where the bear was, and knowing it was headed in that direction.  As I got to the back door and opened it to the screen door, there he was, just at the edge of the woods.  Our dog caught sight of him in that moment.  The bear looked back and saw us, that was the first time I got to see his two-toned face.  He went running into the woods.  In that moment, the dog caught the bear's sent and changed her whine.  Her hair was up, and she was ready to go running after the bear, as is her habit.

Since then, I have been out in the garden picking beans.  I brought the dog out with me, as I was a little nervous the bear, or its mother would be back.  The dog had been barking at the woods in the back yard for several days prior to the bear sighting, making me wonder if something was in the area.  I'm glad I thought to have her with me as she started barking at something several times in the direction from which the bear would have come the day I saw it.  I also heard something larger than a squirrel rustling in the trees near me several times while I was out.  While I love seeing wildlife, I didn't want the vivid experience that would be sure to ensue with me picking from the garden as a baby bear and mother come out of the trees.

I wonder if there is a coincidence in the bear walking the same path as the bobcat that made its way through the garden back in January?  Perhaps our yard is a well traveled path for wildlife, I'm just not always looking out the window at the right time to catch it.  As always happens in moments like these, I wish I had gotten a picture, but it all happened too fast.  Maybe next time.  In the meantime, I keep looking for another baby bear sighting.