Why did I wander outside this morning just in time to see a grackle chase a swallow-tailed kite across my airspace? All I can say is that for them, one being ‘common’ and one being heart-stoppingly rare made not a whit of difference.
Why did I glance outside just now and see a starling wrestling a small snake? Other I mean than that I’ve been in love with the goings-on of this particular back yard since 1984? All I can say is that I tried to join the scene, hoping the starling would be startled into dropping his lunch so I could see what manner of young snakes are in the back yard this year. But he didn’t.
Why is there a chipper-machine grinding away just outside my back fence? I fear it’s because the tree people are back, to notch my beloved Chinese Elm again, all for the sake of free-flowing electricity to the neighborhood.
‘Leave my Chinese Elm alone. I love her. Oh well, if you must …’
Why did I step up onto the rim of the fountain? The better to see the chipper. And, because I’ve never in all these years walked the perimeter of the fountain. It was fun. But I’m no fool – I kept one casual hand on the rim of the fountain.
Everlasting Arms 