Life and Death in the Yard: Country Living

For exactly three years, a good 10-20% of this blog has shared views and videos of

  Life in the Yard:

from
the most graceful, beautiful mated Deer Pair in soybeans (HERE)

click on pics to view large

who came to check out the apple, peach, and apricot trees in early spring and wandered peacefully around the yard for 15 minutes,
to
Woodchucks, one of whom
 came in late winter and is now a family of four who love cold carrots and my mustard greens-- eating apples
 (HERE), and
playing on the woodpile HERE

from
ethereal butterflies (e.g., HERE and HERE and more HERE)

to
Singing Orioles,
Playful Hummingbirds, 
and  stunning Cardinals.
Rockstar Spiders who spin Perfect webs or who play Wargames.
Very Shy Coyotes,
 Dragonflies that are smiling,
and RABBITS, darling wabbits,  Big eared Rabbits!
Sphinx moths and very strange moths,

and
Bald Eagles in kansas and Stately Raptors, Souring Hawks, a Baby hawk
and the faabulous Vultures!
Vultures in light! more Vultures...The beauty of Vultures!
and

The Beautiful Goose. Migrating Geese. HUGE FLOCKS of Geese!
The wonderful and necessary BEES!
The visiting Dogs.   Hollyhocks in Wind. American Goldfinches in the Kansa Wind.
 Pelicans playing on kansas thermals overhead!
Birds in SNOW.  Black and white Cats in Snow with Pink Noses.
Big beautiful Sunflowers and Enourmous sunflowers with bees and

Plant Life, the amazing Flint hills, the life of rocks, and
 the
sublime and strange sky and the  river noises and turtles

The Horses and  Donkeys and Cows nearby along the morning commute...

and

Life in the Yard like HERE and HERE

is what makes

 all the dirt and dust that constantly blows into the house,

 the

 spiders scaring me into adrenaline overdrive,

 the

 wind that destroys everything i planted last week--

OK. 

Even death.

Last night i killed a big brown recluse spider in the bathroom. I didn't want to, but my fear still exists. Perfect love which drives out fear is an ongoing endeavor.

Last night, up late reading the political blogs, i squeaked as a mouse scampered in from the kitchen--it screeched in its tracks as it saw me sitting up in bed--and made a sharp right turn into a pile of sheets. Later in the deep dark of early morning, my Konza Prairie Dog sounded like she was in playheaven, pouncing and murmering with glee as she moved the mouse along in its journey through The Cycle.

I woke and pondered death.

The death of the poor possum,

dead at my hand.

The death of an owl hit by a passing truck. The death of a rabbit, softer than milkweed under the wheel...

The death of a crow in the yard, a wounded skunk, a passing wildcat wounded by a bullet, an enourmous disemboweled rat given as a gift by a member of the Thunderpaws Tribe of cats...

One writes roadkill love poems to channel the hurt...

Death. It is not the death that hurts, but the moments of violence, confusion, pain and fear that preceed.

Earlier in the day

a hawk had descended in hungry fury on the woodpile, resulting in a scattering of birds but perhaps one less squirrel...

There are cycles in everything.

A woodpecker and a sparrow were pecking and arguing over a seedcake yesterday morning. Back and forth they picked and pecked and peeped-- all while NOT eating. Suddenly, a hummingbird came close and just hovered around both of them. This is three feet from the front porch. Usually the hummers stay 15-25 feet out, near the nectar feeders and the flowers.

The hummingbird came within 3-4 inches of each bird, just humming with interest, for about 20 seconds.

The tiny weightless hummingbird whispered away.

 The sparrow and the woodpecker quietly began to eat.

  

A song to listen to while hiking in the Flint Hills: HERE