The Daily Bonus

Dear Maria,

Okay, so I meant sort of monthly updates. Blame days that allow the pause button to be pushed. Little timeouts for me to savor a cup of coffee or take in the geese splashing in the lake or watch the neighbor children chasing about as they play. Days do not rush by—snap, snap, snap—but rather ease by. Some event that I think of as just last week more likely was the week before.

And now it is November. As to the question of the leaves changing color, yes they are. But the temperatures are so mild that several butterfly bushes are blooming again, the nandina are growing, and a number of plants in the nursery are acting like it is the growing season. Even the lilac transplanted from my sister’s backyard and one of the rescue crabapples are breaking into flower.

Go figure.

As for the geese, yes they are still coming in nearly daily. We had that stretch where nearly every evening 60, 70, and even a few times over 100 would fly in to overnight. Now the numbers are much fewer and the pattern is more erratic. Hard to know which birds might be on the move south and which might be part of the overwintering bands.

Oh, finally, after more than a year, saw the first Red-headed Woodpecker out here last week, which seems very unlikely given the many trees that could be worked over.  Or maybe it was the week before.

I am certain it was last week that while sitting out back after sunset I watched a Cooper’s Hawk glide no more than 10 feet above me and across three backyards into the shadows of the trees towards the dam. For those few moments time slowed down, a bonus at the end of what was most likely a good day.

Most likely I say because as I told a friend, my days are very nearly all cake and some are served with extra icing. Each day typically offers something special, something beyond the expected, often obvious, but I suspect not much effort would reveal a highlight from each day. Appreciation of, gratitude for—the daily bonus.

With the days shorter even more so now—dang time change foolishness—the seasonal pull increases despite the weather to date. Hope the holiday season ahead promises many good moments for you and your family.

And then 2018? Impossible.

Always yours,

srk