On a lighter note…

One of my favorite things about living here is the wildlife that frequents my backyard. I was surprised to see so much of it when we moved here because it’s not a particularly woodsy area. It’s a relatively built up cluster of subdivisions – not as bare as our neighborhood in Maryland, but still pretty suburban.

In addition to the more expected birds and squirrels, our regular visitors include foxes, deer (including summer fawns!), raccoons, and bunnies. Once this summer and once last summer, I found gorgeous Polyphemus moths.

The birds vary widely, from mourning doves and woodpeckers to cardinals and blue jays, not to mention whole flocks of geese, a pair of ducks, and the occasional hawk (or falcon?). My favorite would have to be the whimsical little Eastern Bluebird.

I was delighted in the past several days to see a single hummingbird and a lone monarch butterfly. The hummingbird hovered outside my window for at least a full minute, vibrating softly as we held each other’s gaze. I hardly ever see hummingbirds or butterflies around here, so I consider these recent reveals a good omen!

My cats, who I know I shouldn’t allow outside but I do, mostly watch placidly, but on a few occasions they got brazen and chased both fox and deer out of their turf, with me bolting out the back door shouting “What are you thinking?” or “Don’t you dare!”

What they think they’d do if they actually caught up to the poor critters is something I try not to ponder too heavily. It would not end well for the cats, I’d wager…