Since my Mom passed away in 2011 Mother’s Day has become a bitter sweet holiday. It is nice to be celebrated as a mom but still hard not to be able to celebrate with my own mother. The post that I am sharing today was originally written on June 30, 2015 when my blog was in it’s infancy and I had very few followers. It is “A Tribute to Mom”.
It’s been 4 years since she left and I miss her so much. Since then June 30th has always been a difficult day, as have Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter and Mothers Day. It’s also difficult when the kids (who are now all adults) do something exciting, and my first thought is, “I should call mom,” because even the little things that they did were exciting to her. Her grandkids were her greatest joy. I am sure she is so proud of all of her grandkids and great grandkids.
As I look around I don’t see anything that I own that mom actually bought for me, but the gifts she gave me are countless and more precious than anything money could buy. The afghan that she crocheted for me 25+ years ago hangs over the back of my recliner and on the chilly days when I nap in my recliner it warms and comforts me. I often use the potholders she crocheted when I pull…
I will start by saying that my husband and I have a great appreciation for wildlife lest you get the wrong idea while reading this post.
For the last several years the maple tree outside our bedroom window has been the spring/summer home for a pair of robins. We have been mostly aware of this because one of the robins (the early bird) starts singing very loudly each morning – hours before the sun comes up.
From a distance this Robin’s song may be a soothing sound somewhere in the background of our dreams but from fifteen to twenty feet away, even through a wall/window, it sounds like and dance tune coming on with the speakers at full volume. I don’t think I know anyone who wakes up ready to dance at three or four o’clock in the morning. We certainly don’t.
I do understand that the early bird gets the worm but why is it that only this one feels the need to announce it to the whole world???
Last year one of the Robins started a new annoying behavior. I’m assuming this is the male since their job is protect their family. He began flying into our (closed) window. Not just once but over and over again – day after day.
I have read that one reason for this is that he may see his own reflection in the window and think it is another male threatening his nest or family.
The good news is that this year that the pair have found a different tree in the area to build their home. I can still hear the singing in the early morning hours but it’s coming from a distance and not nearly loud enough to wake me from a restful sleep.
The bad news is that even though they are not living in our tree this knockin’ robin continues to mount aggressive attacks on our bedroom window.
His behavior is baffling to say the least. Is he defending his territory? Is he in some kind of distress?
Or has he completely lost his mind?
Monday as I wrote my word of the week post, and vowed to put more effort into offering grace to the undeserving, I thought of this Robin. Yesterday I decided to try to help him. I taped sheets of newspaper to the inside of the window thinking that this might reduce the reflection (appearance of another robin) or in some other way deter him from slamming his body into the glass. We were out at the farm for most of the day so I really didn’t know if it did any good until this morning when the knockin’ robin was at it again.
So it’s back to the drawing board as they say or favorite search engine as the case my be. I’ll give you an update if I find anything that works. I am also open to suggestions.
Have you ever witnessed this type of behavior in a bird? Do you know of anything that might deter this behavior?
Hello and Happy May! It just amazes me that we are already 18 weeks into the year.
Our word for this week is Grace.
According to Lexico, which is powered by Oxford (dictionary), the word Grace is defined as:
1 Smoothness and elegance of movement.
2 Courteous good will.
2.1 An attractively polite manner of behaving.
3 (in Christian belief) the free and unmerited favour of God, as manifested in the salvation of sinners and the bestowal of blessings.
3.1 A divinely given talent or blessing.
4 A period officially allowed for payment of a sum due or for compliance with a law or condition, especially an extended period granted as a special favour.
5 A short prayer of thanks said before or after a meal.
6 His, Her, or Your Grace Used as forms of description or address for a duke, duchess, or archbishop.
7 the Graces or the Three Graces(in Greek mythology) three beautiful goddesses (Aglaia, Thalia, and Euphrosyne) believed to personify and bestow charm, grace, and beauty.
I am reading this book called A Lineage of Grace by Francine Rivers. As I thought of the word Grace I realized that while I had an understanding of the definition(s) of Grace I couldn’t really put it into words.
After reading the above definitions I noticed the difference between the second and third definitions and wondered – what if we (humans) gave grace like God does? His grace is free and unmerited? I understand that we are all flawed in our human form. We are not God, but what difference would it make in the world if we responded with “courteous goodwill or grace” even when is not deserved. I am reminded of this quote “People need loving the most when they deserve it the least”.
a wavering between two or more possible courses of action: IRRESOLUTION
I have to admit that this “Word of the Week” series that I started writing in January 2021 has been more challenging than I expected. I find myself struggling each week to decide on a word. Throughout my life I have never had problems with indecision but in most, probably all, cases I have a much smaller selection. It is reported that there are over a million words in the English language and my challenge is to choose just 1 each week.
In an attempt to make things easier I have decided to narrow the scope of these posts. Going forward the words that I select must be uplifting – something to heighten the mood, make you feel good or make you smile. That is now my goal for Word of the Week. I hope you will stick with me and we will see how it goes. 🙂
How you ever struggled with indecision? Do you have a process for making decisions?
Hello and Happy Monday! I thought I would just share a few photos today.
I’d love to hear from you so please feel free to leave me a comment, maybe even a caption for some of the photos, or tell me how your day is going. I hope it is a good one. 🙂
Don't Eat It! Soap and Skin Care 