(by Katherine Mansfield)
The fields are snowbound no longer;
There are little blue lakes and flags of tenderest green.
The snow has been caught up into the sky--
So many white clouds--and the blue of the sky is cold.
Now the sun walks in the forest,He touches the bows and stems with his golden fingers;
They shiver, and wake from slumber.
Over the barren branches he shakes his yellow curls.
Yet is the forest full of the sound of tears....
A wind dances over the fields.
Shrill and clear the sound of her waking laughter,
Yet the little blue lakes tremble
And the flags of tenderest green bend and quiver.
This is our first full day of spring. The sun is definitely NOT walking in our forest, and the birds are cold and hungry. Normally, there is little interspecies fussing and fighting among the feeder-birds. The male cardinals squabble amongst themselves, sometimes with great shows of fluttering wings and the occasional aerial fight. Today, however, even the finches are feeling brave. Here's one of the goldfinches warning off a cardinal.
That's quite a gutsy little bird! :-)
ReplyDeleteI watched a little bird drama on the lake yesterday. A crow was foraging at the edge of the water when a gull that was swimming quietly along the shore apparently got too close. Another crow - probably the first one's mate - flew down and, together, they drove the gull off. The gull simply flew around in an arc and landed further along the shore and continued its swim.
It's always funny to see little birds all full of bravado. Occasionally, a lone Titmouse will scold my two beagles - I guess for violating its personal space - and it always cracks me up.
ReplyDeletemy word, do you STILL have all that snow down there? There's something decidedly unsettling about Ontario, Canada, having zero snow, and Texas having piles of it. Weird.
ReplyDeletefalltoclimb, the snow was gone by the next day, since the temperature climbed to 73.
ReplyDeleteLove that feisty goldfinch! You caught him at just the right moment. Nice.
ReplyDelete