Saturday Morning
Ducks land hard on lake
A chorus of feathered brown
White bubbles remain
~ October 8, 2021
Stalky chalk-white bird
Balancing on two brown legs
Constantly startled
~ January 20, 2017
Cardinal on magnolia tree Photo credit: Crista Dalton
Cardinals, cheery song birds, are found all over North America and elsewhere. They have various calls, and one distinctive chirp in our part of the country: “se-vére, se-vére, se-vére.” They sing other songs too, one followed by a warble. Male cardinals, decked out in scarlet plumage, often appear on Christmas plates and holiday cards-–even on bags of birdseed.
During mating season, the male and female sing antiphonally from different perches, matching each other with sweet song. There’s a lesson here: If I want to hear tender tunes from my mate, I may need to practice them: first of all, in my thoughts, and then, I am ready to translate them into pleasing speech.
Finally, brothers [and sisters], whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. ~ Philippians 4:8 ESV
There’s More: I’m about ¾ through reading Laurie Kehler’s Wings of Mercy: Spiritual Reflection from the Birds of the Air.
The blurb
Observe the cheery bluebird, the hovering hummingbird, and the brilliant cardinal along with the lowly sparrow. Lively description and fascinating information about our feathered friends coupled with honest, searching insights about living out our faith make Wings of Mercy a book for every birdwatcher, whether casual or dedicated.
Hummingbird ornament © Marian Beaman
And Even More!
A bird song you’d like to identify? This interactive website may help. On the site, you will find a “tree” of birds in costume. Clicking on each bird will make its call audible. The website will look like the image below. Easy Peasy!
A favorite bird?
What facts about birds can you add here?
Good morning, Marian! You know how much I love watching birds! I love your hummingbird ornament.
I like listening to the call and response of cardinals–and other birds, too.
I have an app on my phone that identifies birds from their sounds. It’s difficult to use in the park though because of the planes. 😀
All your followers know how much attention you pay to birds both in photos and poetry.
You mentioned planes. I imagine the Newark airport may interfere, maybe even JFK and LaGuardia. Cheers to more birdwatching, Merril! 😀
No, we are right across the river from the Philadelphia airport, not close to the others at all. 😀
Okay, I remember you and Doug picking me up at the airport in Philly and then our drive to Chincoteague, which now seems so long ago.
I was going to point that out. 😏
😀
I could spend hours watching the birds. I’m sure you know my favorite bird. 🙂 I have that same ornament!
Ah, Jill! My daughter who took the cardinal photo gave that ornament. She also gifted me with a birdbath years ago.
The hummingbird is the perfect motif for you, humming away authoring book after book. Best wishes on the new launch. 😀
Delightful! And an interesting premise for the devotional book. My favorite is probably the woodpecker who hangs around at times, hummingbirds, and cardinals–can you tell I like the colorful ones best? I like you description of the bird who looks like he/she’s “constantly startled.” 🙂
I love colorful plumage too. I found out from the bird books that the bird near the lake I thought was an egret is actually a heron. I took ornithology from D. Ralph Hostetter at EMC. I wonder if he was around when you attended.
About the devotional book: Not long ago my sister Jan passes it on to me, a gift from our mother when she volunteered for Choice Books. The note is signed “Enjoy! Love, Mother 2003.”
Oh how cool to know that your mother volunteered for Choice Books–probably the Lancaster division! You know that Choice Books was housed in our offices at Mennonite Media for many years. And yes, I remember hearing of D. Ralph (as they called him sometimes) but I don’t think he was actually teaching any more. The museum was named for him (not sure if it still is?). You were fortunate to have studied ornithology with this prof!
My mother volunteered for years; it was part of her social life, I’m sure, since her niece and husband were in the crew.
Professor D. Ralph held us in rapt attention in our Saturday morning walk through the woods. I didn’t catch everything he taught because I was just trying to keep up with his high stepping, quick-witted-ness. Thanks for returning with a followup, Melodie.
Wonderful haiku. I do appreciate cardinals. We never used to have them in our area, but with temperatures warmer here than they used to be, cardinals are common. But I’m still shocked and appreciative every time I see one. They feel like a special surprise gift of happiness and beautiful song.
What a surprise to find cardinals as far north as Ottawa. Enjoy the beautiful song. Thank you, Arlene! 😀
What a lovely post, Marian! Love your haiku. And what a great idea for a devotional.
I love the cardinal. No matter where I live, a pair of cardinals can be found in a tree nearby.
Kehler draws parallels between bird behavior and one’s spiritual life. She has also done a similar book about gardening. Good to hear from you, Linda Marie! 😀
Marian — In the summertime, I love to watch hummingbirds flock to our nectar feeders.
Lucky you, Laurie!. I’ve seen hummingbirds, just one at a time, come to my feeder. You may recall I posted a video of “swams” of hummingbirds at feeders in Missouri. 😀
There has been a bird call I’ve been trying to identify for the past several years. When I listened to the various calls on the tree, I discovered that it’s from a chickadee. The chickadee is my favorite bird, but I never knew it had more than one call!
There you go, Liz! I’m glad the bird call site helped you identify the Chickadee, the song kind of onomatopoetic when you think about it. 😀
I knew the onomatopoetic call; it was the other one I didn’t know was made by a chickadee. I’m inordinately pleased.
“Inordinately pleased,” as well you should be. So cool when you can make such a connection. Thanks again, Liz.
You’re welcome, Marian. One of the many unexpected benefits of being a part of the blogging community.
😀
Great duck landings! Cardinals visit my feeders year round. They’re calm nonaggressive visitors. This time of year, the air is filled with chick-a-dee-dee-dee. Chick-a-dee-dee-dee. They stay in the fields and woods most of the summer, but they’re eating black oil sunflower seeds at the feeders now and talking to each other. Wild birds are my companions year round, so thanks for focusing on this blessing.
You pay close attention to nature, especially wildlife. I noticed that you mention your chickadees talking to each other. So cool! I checked out a book from the library that has a section on bird behavior. I too am fascinated by the special language of our feathered friends.
Thanks for giving us a window into your world, Elaine! 😀
A brilliant capture of the landing! And even more compelling is your words of poetry, Marian. Thank you!
Lady Budd, thank you for visiting my blog today. I visited yours and left a comment. It’s obvious we both enjoy bird watching, photography, and all things literary. 😀
Thanks for this lovely post, Marian. Think I’ll put that bird book on my Christmas wish list! I featured that youtube of bird calls in one of my blog posts and my readers really enjoyed it! (May 2, 2021 http://ens-intransit.blogspot.ca/). I also love watching the geese on our lake and enjoyed your Haikus, especially the one of the brown and white bubbles, reflecting the color of the geese.
I’m glad you enjoyed he haikus and Kehler’s book, which would make a wonderful Christmas gift for you. Your adoring grandchildren (and children) probably like to fulfill your wishes.
I can’t trace where I found the bird-call tree for this post, but I did read your May post. As you know, I read all of your posts. Typically, when I glean an idea from a friend’s blog, I give credit as I did with the Marriage Box: https://marianbeaman.com/2021/08/04/marriage-box-have-look-inside/
Enjoy birdsong and more on this November day, Elfrieda! 😀
Hi Marian, I share your love of birds. Your haikus are lovely, especially the second one which captures the spirit of the bird.
You and I am both lovers of birds and poetry, two things that lift our spirits. Thanks, Robbie! 😀
My parents were both birders, and some of that rubbed off on me. I used to go on bird counts with my dad. We’d get up at the crack of dawn, and share a thermos of soup. I was dad’s recorder while he rattled off the birds. Great father/son memories.
Great, Pete! I know you are into other genres right now, but if you ever write memoir, this would be a wonderful anecdote to include. Precious memories, how they linger! 😀
Watching the ducks land is fascinating. Kind of mesmerizing. I know cardinals are pretty, we have them around here, but they are not the brightest birds, flying into windows until they knock themselves out. I think the saying “bird brain” refers to them.
Ally, I got a little carried away reading about bird behavior lately. One writer said it’s best not to think about birds as feathered humans. Ha! How are they to know about glass and mirrors? Still, they operate on instinct and survival like other animals.
I’m glad you enjoyed the duck landing. Ducks are endlessly entertaining, and I look forward to their performance every day. I wish I could understand their “language,” so much quacking on takeoff and landing. Thanks! 😀
Hi,
I haven’t read this book but it sounds like one I would love to read because it is based on spiritual reflections. By the way, the Cardinal is the bird of the state of Georgia, my home state. I used to love waking up in the mornings and going outside just to listen to the different chirps of birds in our backyard.
Shalom aleichem,
I’m not surprised you are in touch with nature and have been from an early age. You would enjoy Wings of Mercy: https://www.amazon.com/Wings-Mercy-Laurie-Kehler/dp/0764226932/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8
Kehler writes with head and heart. I like her spiritual musings, drawing parallels between the cardinal who takes turns singing with other cardinals, a lesson in how we humans should live in harmony with others without criticism or judgment. Thanks, Pat. And peace and joy to you! 😀
What a perfect way to start the day with your beautiful haiku words and the sights and sounds of birds Marian. I love it. I have to say that my favorite bird is the mourning dove. I am captivated by its call. When I take my walks, I am filled with contentment when I hear the sound and scan the rooftops until I see the bird, and often a pair of them sitting close to one another. Mourning doves mate for life which is interesting to me too.
I’m glad you enjoyed this, Melanie. I did know that swans mate for life but did not know the same is true for the mourning dove. The author explains that as a child she thought the bird was named “morning dove” because her mom announced its call when she got up in the in the morning. Later, she learned that the “coo-ah, coo, coo, coooo” was actually from the bird spelled “mourning ” dove, which put a totally different slant on her impression of the bird. Enjoy your weekend! 😀
This post reminds me of the joy I feel while watching a flock of ducks rise up, fly over the creek and then land like an air force squadron at Lititz Springs Park. I also brought a wooden hummingbird purchased in Cuba, where I had a deep encounter with the smallest, rare, bee hummingbird. I feel deep sadness that North America has lost three billion birds since 1970. https://www.businessinsider.com/3-billion-birds-disappeared-across-us-canada-since-1970-2019-9
Shirley, looking at birds and ducks in flight gives me a nudge to feel awe and wonder too. Thank you for the link which reminds me that our house has contributed to habitat loss, a big offender. Fortunately, the builders here and probably in Lititz have designated preservation areas.
By the way, I had not seen a bee hummingbird until a wedding anniversary visit to The Cove in NC. And I’m looking forward to your seeing Florida ducks in December! 😀
A fun and colorful post Marian. I loved your Haiku and the perfect image and video capture to go with them. <3
Thank you, Debby! I love how you embrace so many genres. By the way, I watched the Netflix doc on Joan Didion The Center will not Hold. Then this morning, I spotted the blue spine of her The Year of Magical Thinking. I hadn’t given it away after all. LOL
Do stay warm and toasty in Toronto! 😀
Our birdfeeder in the back of our house is a great source of entertainment. Birds are so much fun to watch. Thanks for sharing your video and haiku!
And thanks for commenting here. Birds flit and flutter and never apologize. I like that about them! 😀