Natural Musings

Letter To My Backyard

Dear Backyard,

Happy 28th Birthday!

Thank you for all you hold,

the bur oak,

towering over half your green lawn,

squirrels at feeders,

birds perching and waiting their turn.

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I see before me

the rail fence my husband built,

now covered in a vine of purple morning glories,

piles of limestone rocks awaiting a project,

a hummingbird visiting the blooming red Turk’s cap,

and little green lizards in a mating embrace.

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Thank you for all I see in my mind’s eye:

a swing set and a sandbox,

a sweating teenage son digging the hole,

where the pecan tree will go,

another, younger son pulling baby sister through the grass in a red flyer wagon,

past the cactus garden, and around again.

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Grandma, blindfolded, swinging a bat at a star shaped birthday pinata,

the laughter of friends chugging beers and

dodging smoke from the grill,

while lights fly from 4th of July sparklers

in the hands of kids, arms stretched to the limit.

And generations of dogs running in the grass.

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Thank you for giving me retreat

under January’s cold stars,

long ago,

after a spousal tiff,

with only you and the cat on my lap as a witness,

as I dried my tears and cooled down.

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You are our creation,

full of colorful plantings, love, memories.

And we are your creation.

Thank you for all you hold and

thank you for giving us space to grow.

With Gratitude, Betty

Dove On Hand Built Cedar Rail Fence And Blooming Turk’s Caps

(photos by B. McCreary)

A Photo And A Poem

My Places

My place is on the couch,

glass of merlot in hand,

ready for the catharsis

of a Lifetime movie

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My place is in the voting booth

the paper ballot in the slot,

my tiny voice a part

of the process

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My place is behind the lens

focusing close,

on birds and bugs,

as the purple morning glory climbs nearby

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My place is on the path,

each step bringing

wonder and wisdom,

moving forward in life

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My best place is beside you,

both in our porch chairs,

coffee cups empty,

reminiscing and planning

Illusions

Just a few things seen recently…

A little Animal (Bat?) nestled at base of Cypress tree

These hearts were scratched into the path from the parking lot to the entrance of The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. Just seeing them made me smile.

Wishing you small joys and smiles today and everyday

To Weed, Or Not To Weed…That Is The Question

Our backyard is an eclectic collection of growing things. There are our natives, the giant Bur Oak, delicate Redbud trees, and various bushes and flowers. And there are our non-native plants like the Crepe Myrtles and the Rose of Sharon bush…both of these are part of my late mother’s legacy. Part of me wants to go totally native in our yard plants, but I don’t want to get rid of the ones I got from my mom.

And my husband enjoys having a yard of grass to mow. Our grass is a combo of native buffalo grass and St. Augustine. We planted the buffalo grass. The St. Augustine has migrated from a neighbor’s yard and now covers much of the yard…except for various weeds.

Weed- “a plant that is not valued where it is growing”-Webster’s Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary

In late winter the Dandelion and Sow Thistle flowers are often the only thing blooming and are a source of food for bees and numerous other insects. So, I like to let them be.

Unknown Type Of Insect On Dandelion Flower

My husband and I “consult” on what can be mown and what I want to let grow. Something new this year are the little red flags placed around areas I want let alone, mostly the bunches of native purple Spiderworts that are all over now. They are descendants of a couple of plants my mother gave us years ago. I have written here before about how wonderful it is to see them come up each year, a part of her legacy that lessens my lingering grief.

Anyway, beyond the red flag areas, my husband had some other plants to ask me about. One was an old Sow Thistle plant. It is growing just off our back porch in the path of our brick walkway causing us to step around it. Seeing that the flowers were gone, and it having gone to seed, I said “Sure, go ahead and mow it down.”

I was thinking that having lost it’s flowers it had lost it’s usefulness.

We had the mowing conversation while sitting on the porch enjoying a warm February day. The upcoming mowing would be the first of the season.

Suddenly, a little bird landed on the plant in question.

Okay…So, I had forgotten about birds liking the seeds. The plant would stay for awhile longer in our yard as a nice little food source for these critters. And the plus here is that we were only about 6 feet away from this little guy and got to enjoy his beauty.

Here is another weed shot:

Can you imagine never, ever getting to pucker up and blow this bundle of seed heads off into the sky, maybe making a wish as you do?

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All photos by B. McCreary

Sources:

Southwestern and Texas Wildflowers – Peterson Field Guide-Niehaus/Ripper/Savage

Wildflowers of Texas by Geyata Ajilvsgi

Weeds-A Golden Guide by Alexander C. Martin

Scene Change

No real subject this month. Just some pretty photos from a trip to the coast in January. So grateful to be able to get down there at least once a year and enjoy the critters and scenery that I can’t experience in my home town.

We stayed at a new place called The Lighthouse Inn at Aransas Bay in Rockport. I recommend it. There is a restaurant on property and at least 2 more within walking distance. The grounds are nice, with a covered pier for fishing or just enjoying some relaxation by the bay.

Brown Pelicans Near Fishing pier at The Lighthouse Inn

We saw dolphins in the water, but I didn’t get photos.

Besides a change of scenery, our main objective of this trip was to see the Whooping Cranes that winter along the coast. They arrive in November and leave in March, so January is a perfect time to look for them. The following photos are from an area just outside of Goose Island State Park.

Whooping Cranes, Sandhill Cranes, and Others on private property near the bay and Goose Island State Park

The water in the bay was down and these birds were on a sand spit. This is the closest I have ever been to the Whoopers.

Whooping Crane Family On Sand Spit In Bay Across Road From Private Property With The Other Whoopers

Some people travel the world to see specific birds. I am lucky to have to only drive 191 miles to see these once endangered birds.

Go to this site for more info on the cranes:

https://www.fws.gov/species/whooping-crane-grus-americana

All photos by B. McCreary

What Stuff Are

“Why are you up so early, before everyone else in the family?” A young mom says to her 3 year old.

The 3 year old replies: “To See What Stuff Are!”

This was told to me by my mother many times throughout my life. I was a curious child and continued wanting to know what was going on around me. What were mommy and daddy doing when I was not around? I can remember sneaking out of bed and watching t.v. with them ( I was undetected behind a chair!). Maybe it was/is a sort of “fear of being left out.”

When I was 8 my maternal grandparents gave me a transistor radio. I listened to music and news and talk radio. I remember being at a sleepover at a friend’s. We were in a tent in her backyard and she was sleeping and I was listening to my little radio with an earpiece. I found the Christian radio programs being broadcast from over the border in Mexico. Hell fire and damnation sermons that fascinated me and were so different from my Unitarian church services. Hey, I could even send in some money and buy a piece of the cross Jesus was crucified on…not sure I am remembering that correctly.

As I grew older I wanted to know what was going on in other places. My brother and I got walkie talkies. I was excited to learn that not only could we talk to each other from the next street, we could pick up some police radio chatter! This is how I learned that someone was shooting people from the University of Texas tower. I went into the house and told my mother and some visiting friends what was happening. We turned on the t.v. and watched a live photo of the tower.

A year or two later we were visiting some friends of friends. The dad of the family introduced us kids to a shortwave radio. So cool! We could hear people talking all over the world. I wanted one and finally got one at Christmas or on a birthday. I would spend an hour or two tuning the dial. I would hear ham operators chatting with each other, morse code…which I briefly attempted to learn…and broadcast channels like the Voice Of America, Radio HCJB from Ecuador, and Radio Havana, Cuba. I listened to all sorts of languages, often having no clue to what language it was.

I got rid of my last shortwave radio about the time it could be accessed over the internet. And then only checked out the stations a few times. I have no idea how to do that now. Instead, I have discovered live streaming on You Tube! Lately, I have spent a lot of time checking out a few regular feeds to watch the anti ICE protests in U. S. cities. One or two of the reporters seem to be unbiased journalists. Others are pretty open on their point of view. I mostly watch the liberal leaning ones, but sometimes check out the right wing feeds.

Imagine a bear in a cave, supposedly hibernating, but actually watching You Tube on her Ipad…that is me. Last night I was up late watching a fire someone had set near a detention center in Los Angeles. But, I can only stand so much of people chanting and yelling F*** ICE and watching people being dragged from cars or houses and being shot.

So, I tune into live bird and animal feeder streams from all over the world. I have watched live (and sometimes old clips) views of jackals and gnus at a watering hole in Namibia; hummingbirds in Costa Rica; Pandas in China (in captivity); badgers in Denmark; and birds coming to snow covered feeders in upstate New York and Canada.

A recent discovery is live feeders in South Texas and in South Carolina.

You Tube Feed South Carolina-Deer and Raccoon

Raccoon, Armadillos, and Opossum (in background) -South Carolina

Javelina, Skunk, Raccoon, and Opossum-South Texas Feeder

I have seen some tussling (usually within the same species) and growling and other threatening behavior between species. But, mostly they are feeding right next to each other…aware of their differences…but tolerating each other as they eat. I know these feeders do not replicate their lives in the wild…but it does make me think that maybe different people can get along better and even be kind to each other and share resources…?

Meanwhile, I will go check out videos of the venerable Monks and their Walk for Peace day 98.

*photos taken off You Tube from my Ipad

*Teenager with head down taken by Barbara Downes

Youtube.com

South Carolina Crittervision Critter Cam: Do a search for this on Youtube…I think this is going 24/7

Blue Indigo Trails Camera in South Texas-do a search on Youtube.com…they may only be streaming at night

Tis The Season

It is kind of a cliche that this time of year can be hard on people…the trying to find the right gift (or hurry to make the right gift) …the shorter daylight hours…missing those who are no longer in our lives…those both living and passed. I was doing fine until the morning of the 24th of December. I was stressed with the cleaning I wanted to have done before company came on the 25th. I took it out on my husband and daughter and one of them then said something that triggered my meltdown. Lots of crying and isolating for an hour or two. I think I needed the cathartic release of the crying…getting rid of some pent up feelings. Then a few good hugs and kind words pulled me back into being present in the moment. The house got cleaned with help from family and I got to watch my favorite holiday movie: Dolly Parton’s Coat Of Many Colors

It also has been a time for calmness and quiet and pretty lights.

A time for Nature’s colors…

The subtle change in color of native poinsettias…

And A Red Bud Leaf’s Boldness

A time for bareness…

And a time for fullness…

Our yard full of Red Oak leaves from neighbor’s tree

A time to light up the darkness…from the neighbor’s lighted blue and white inflatable Llama for Hanukkah to…

“Illuminations” at The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

Tis the season for expressions of love and peace like the one I saw on a child’s sweatshirt at the Wildflower Center. It read: “Make smores, not wars”

And the Monks Walking for Peace …

This is a screen shot from You Tube…

As I write this on December 30th, the monks are on Day 66 of their Walk For Peace. They set out from Ft. Worth, Texas and are heading through the southern U. S. towards Washington, D. C. Their saffron robes walking down rural highways have created quite a following. People are following their progress on Facebook and Instagram. Even Aloka, the little dog traveling with them, now has his own Facebook page.

In towns large and small, people greet them and feed them and put them up for the night. And the crowds of the curious and hopeful are growing. The monks try to walk about 25 miles a day, even in the cold and wet.

I have been following them via You Tube videos since they were in East Texas. I am in awe of them and of the people turning out to greet them. They have helped me come back to center in my own life in many ways:

Tis the season to be grateful for life, family and friends and

to carry forgiveness into the new year ahead.

Tis the season to keep moving on towards peace and love.

“Love and accept each other, and always be kind”-quote from another holiday movie: Dolly Parton’s Circle of Love

Links to videos of Monks Walking for Peace:

And one more:

https://www.facebook.com/reel/1196917959054660

(Photos by B. McCreary or stills and videos from You Tube)

Books and Memories

Yesterday’s Wordle word was “gruff” and I started thinking about the first time I remember the word “gruff.” It was being read the story “The Three Billy Goats Gruff” by my mother when I was very young.

We always had books in the house. I remember many trips to the library in Shreveport and in Austin. Books were often given as gifts in my family, and still are. There are bookshelves in every room of the house except the bathrooms. I often purge books…some go to friends…some to the Goodwill…because more books always come into the house.

And like many of you readers, I have a stack of books in progress. I usually only have one fiction going at a time, but read bits of several non-fiction books at the same time. Here is the current bedside stack:

When I got my hair cut yesterday afternoon, I expected to talk to my hairdresser about what we did for Thanksgiving, the weather, etc. We ended up talking about books. I had my eyes closed most of the time as clippers neared my face and bits of my hair floated down around my shoulders. She talked about Jane Austen’s books and her current interest in Roman history, sparked by a book a client and professor gave her.

Driving home, the radio featured an interview with a British author (I didn’t catch his name) who said that he recently read that the number of people reading for pleasure is down 40%.

I remember a drive home from the library when I was in my teens. I had a brief bout of depression as I came to the realization that I would never be able to read all the books in the world.

I do admit to lots of screen use these days, but always find time to sit and read a book, even if it is only for 20 minutes…sometimes in a chair and sometimes in the tub.

Here is a photo of one of the bibliophiles in my family:

This is my late father. Note the pen in his right hand. He was always marking books with comments in the margins and underlines and exclamation points…as if he were still a young man in college. He always had a book with him. I know he had at least one book in his pack going into combat in Korea. He took books with him on canoe trips and into hospital waiting rooms. On road trips my mother drove while he read.

There is another photo that only exists in my mind’s eye. It was taken many years before his portrait. It shows the front of a ranch style house. On one side of the house is a driveway leading to a carport. In the carport a station wagon is parked. The back of the station wagon is open. There are two human figures in this shot. One is me at 9 years old. I have straight blonde hair to my shoulders and am wearing shorts and have an arm full of books that I am putting into the back of the station wagon. The other figure is my 8 year old brother. He is shorter and rounder than me and has a short crewcut. He also has an armload of books he is placing in the back of the station wagon. We are loading my father’s books into the station wagon for him to take to his new rental house. My parents were separating after 10 years of marriage and my father was giving us the privilege of loading up his books. Many, many books will be left behind with my brother and I and my mother.

We are a book family and always will be a book family.

*Today is Mark Twain’s birthday.

*Photos by B. McCreary

No Kings Rally In Austin, Texas

I had the October 18th No Kings Rally on my radar and calendar for weeks and planned to attend. I had not shown up at a political rally since January 21st 2017 when my daughter and I attended the Women’s March Against Trump at the Texas State Capitol. At that time I attended a volunteer session put on by the organizers and helped pass out signs (I forget what they said). I carried my own sign which read “To gather strength and give support”). I grew up in Austin and I remember my dad taking me, my brother, my 3 stepsisters, and my stepmother to see the Klan march at the State Capitol in 1965. I was 11. I remember my dad saying that if there was trouble, we should meet back at the car. I also remember being appalled that there were little children in klan garb. Over the years I have attended many rallys and protests at the Capitol, mostly to take photos.

This time I felt compelled to show up because I have been sitting on the sidelines doing nothing as our country needs help. I have sent a few letters to Congresspeople supporting the ones doing the good work, but other than keep track of what is going on, I have done nothing. It was forecast to be very hot that day and I kept going back and forth. Am I going or not? Finally I made my decision and planned to meet up with a friend there. My family members opted out for heat and other reasons. I would represent our family.

Well, folks, it was horribly hot! The temperature was 95 and it was humid and I don’t tolerate heat as well as in my earlier years. But, I brought water and wore a hat. I also wore my bluebonnet t-shirt (our state flower) and my monarch butterfly earrings. My husband and daughter dropped me off on the northwest side of the capitol and I joined others the few blocks to the grounds.

Our bags were checked for weapons before we were allowed on the grounds.

I wandered around looking at all the colorful costumes and signs and listened a bit to the speakers. I mostly gravitated to the shade of the old oaks on the grounds. My friend texted she was running late (we never did meet up). The Austin police were there and I spotted our police chief standing under a tree while one of her fellow officers spoke to a reporter. Our police chief and other officers did join the march.

I walked south hoping to get a shot of the march coming down Congress avenue. I had to dodge people on scooters and bicycles (including some cops riding on the sidewalk) as I waited. Chatted with some friendly folks. The energy was joyful and strong.

The March Begins at 11th st. and Congress Ave.

“Humanity Over Greed”

“World Without Caesars”

Guy In Banana Suit “Bananas For Democracy”

The costumes were fun, but I imagine very hot!

The pink costume is an Axohotl …Sorry the shot is not better…there were more Axohotl costumes there and many dinosaurs and a bee and a chicken…

I heard people singing Bye Bye Mrs. American Pie and drummers and there was a woman leading an aerobics dance group in the middle of the march (her face was very red!). I saw a banner that read “Raging Grannies” and yes, there were frog costumes.

One complaint I have is that there were people with dogs on leashes and one guy had a live chicken in a plastic box…it was way too hot to drag these little critters along.

On a positive note, there were multiple people working the crowd offering water and a woman handing out small American flags (I took one). And the age range covered the old and the young. There were people of all colors, some with rainbow flags, some with American flags, and some with an interesting hybrid Mexican and American flag. I saw people in wheelchairs and blind people with canes.

It was wonderful being there with all these beautiful people standing up for our country!

(full disclosure…it was hot and I only went as far as 5th street where I peeled off and walked west to hitch a ride back home with my husband and daughter)

*Check out info on the Axohotl at this link:

britannica.com/animal/axolotl

Stone Chicken

Earlier in the month-

Dear Self,

It is a fairly cool September morning. I am sitting on the back porch drinking coffee. My husband is doing the same. The lizard couple is emerging from their porch umbrella bed.

It is 8:23 a.m. and I am observing the stone chicken on the porch nearby.

She sits near our “Philosopher’s Rock”…so named because of the human and gargoyle statues that sit on that rock while pondering great thoughts.

The stone chicken is actually made of cement and is about a foot tall and heavy. Most of the paint that decorated her is long gone, weathered away by whatever elements she has been exposed to over the years. There is a hint of green at her base that is meant to represent grass, and a hint of yellow on one leg. Her beak is a bit chipped.

She was in our yard in Shreveport when I was a child, so she is at least 65 years old! We moved to Austin and for some reason my parent’s hauled her with us. After a year, they bought a house and she resided there for the next 49 years, until my mother died. Then her heaviness became part of our yard statue collection.

“Chicken” is often used to call out someone’s fear. This morning I am contemplating my own fears…some quite heavy. Fears that I have carried with me all these years…some acquired in Shreveport and some gathered here.

In the past few years I have been planning on painting the stone chicken’s bare skin. I might use bright paint in multiple colors. I might paint each feather a different color. This is only a plan. I do have the paint, but whether I ever paint the thing is to be determined.

It occurs to me, as I compare the stone chicken to my own fears…have I painted over and prettied up my own fears? In layers of…searching for words here…the word for pushing your feelings down…the words for pretending all was just fine…the words for pushing them, the fears and anger, away…I am in awe that I have carried these old feelings with me these many, many years. I know they have weighted down my spirit. Does knowing this allow me to release these old feelings? Well, that is a work in progress.

Maybe someday I will feel lighter, like this little wren perched on the stone chicken’s head.