My orchid cactus, given to me as a clipping from someone’s yard, is blooming. For many years I had no idea what I had. I stuck the clipping in a pot and subsequently forgot about it. It grew to be unexceptional, spindly, and unattractive by normal standards of beauty. I[…]
Unseasonably cold in May is 50s at night and 60s during the day. Some Memorial Day weekends are so hot I sweat, even with the air conditioner on. But not this one. This year the marine layer is so thick and heavy it feels like one of those gravity weighted[…]
In this moment I am surrounded by nature. I mean seriously. The Mockingbird Chronicles is just the tip of the iceberg, there are so many other birds in my urban backyard. A few days ago I came home from my very first shift as a docent in a butterfly house[…]
This may be my final Mockingbird post. The babies now spend some of their time in neighbors’ yards and once they learn to feed themselves I will have no means of tracking them. I follow them as best I can now. One sibling lags behind the other, slower to fly,[…]
The calm and silence in my backyard is almost deafening. For a short while both parents are absent. When they do appear it is without food. A crow is allowed to perched atop the telephone pole without threat. The nest is empty. This puzzles me because elsewhere I hear the[…]
Mockingbird aggression is on the rise as babies food intake increases. LOL, this sounds like the heading for a newspaper article. Bryx can’t venture far from the house now without both birds ganging up on him. And the air is thick with sounds of warning squawks and hungry squeals.[…]
I thought I’d look up the spiritual meaning of Mockingbirds given their presence in my life right now. Whenever the mockingbird arrives, look for opportunities to sing forth your own song. Follow your own path. Learn to take what you can and apply your own creative imagination and intuition to[…]
After some investigative work, the nest is found. The frequent squealing of baby birds narrows down the location to a dense juniper tree next to my house. The parents confirm the spot, after much hesitation. Even though I keep my distance they know I’m watching and are not sure if[…]
