I’ve taken to watching the eagles again. This year it’s a different nest in a different part of the country, but am watching a pair of bald eagles care for two gray-feathered eaglets. I am also watching a red-tailed hawk’s nest with white and black spotted hatchlings. Throughout all of last year I watched a bald eagle’s nest near an Iowa farm, watching the babies grow from small fuzzy hatchlings like these to large nearly full grown juveniles. It was quite an interesting and unique form of entertainment. I looked in on the eagle family at least once a day last year, and am likely to do the same with these different nests this year. The ultimate in birdwatching from the safety and comfort of one’s own home. I am a grateful bird nerd this evening.
About three blocks from my house is a small pond where a gaggle of geese hang out regularly. At the moment there is a larger gaggle than usual as there are now about ten goslings–fuzzy brownish-yellow feathered critters. They are quite tame–both the parents and the babies: I saw several geese standing quite close to a human adult and child who had come down to see (and probably feed) the geese. My guess is that the geese are a nuisance–they often are considered such, what with their honking and goose poop everywhere, not to mention their sometimes aggressive tendencies. From what I can tell these geese are relatively harmless. Back in my Cali days it was the wild turkeys who provided me with nonstop entertainment, hanging out as they did in the back parking lot of my condo.
I recognize that these things represent the simplest of gratitudes, relatively unimportant in the scheme of my life. And yet, these small pleasures are part of what gives meaning to life. Everything can’t be so deep and meaningful; sometimes it is these simple things that bring joy. So in the spirit of simple gratitude, I offer thanks for a few such blessings.
I am grateful for having spent a few hours with my big sister Michaele. I hung out down at her house, chatting about a wide variety of subjects: books, gardening, the antics of our nearly-grown children now and back in their early days. It was easygoing and relaxing and a pleasant way to spend a few hours in between my trip to the grocery store and my Sunday chores getting my house ready for my daughter’s visit–an unexpected trip for the weekend.
I am grateful for weekends like this–it was a little low-key, which is what I needed, and yet I still managed to get a few things done. I spent a lot of time on the phone talking to different folks about this and that, offering advice to some, taking advice from others, but most importantly engaging in the normal give and take of human relationships.
Now as I prepare to rest in preparation for the start of a new week I realize that I need to give myself a little bit of down time before I sleep. I have a very good meditation CD that I like to listen to as I drift off. I can focus my mind on something positive before I rest with the hope and expectation that I’ll wake up in a good frame of mind. It’s a good hope. I have a busy time coming up in the next couple of weeks, beginning with tomorrow. No matter how busy the next two weeks are going to be, I still have to focus on what’s right in front of me and not make myself crazy anticipating all that needs to get done. Tonight, my task is to rest my mind and my body and get ready for tomorrow and know that all shall be well.
“The night heralds the dawn. Let us look expectantly to a new day, new joys, new responsibilities…” (From the New Zealand Prayer Book, 1989)