It's a Wren Thing

I used to clean house for a man named Joyce (yes, his name was Joyce), and I took care of the Boston fern he had his living room. When he died in 2000, one of his daughters gave me the fern, and 22 years later, it is still with me, and as it usually does, is spending the summer on the porch.

This is a picture of the fern from 2010. 

This year it doesn’t look quite as lush. 

Most people who live where Carolina Wrens also live almost certainly have a story about the strange places these enchanting little birds choose to build their nests. We are no exception.

One year they built a nest between window screen, which had been torn from the frame by a raccoon, and the window…

One year they chose a partly open umbrella on the porch…

Several places in the garage...

 including in the coiled hose for the air compressor.

A few days ago I discovered a nest in the fern. 

This is a terrible place for them to have picked. The fern is right next to the door, and we disturb it frequently throughout the day.

She has laid 3 eggs so far. I am not holding out much hope that she will successfully hatch the eggs and raise the babies. A black snake lives under the porch and will almost certainly make a meal of the eggs or the babies.

In the meantime, I have to figure out how to water the fern without dousing the nest. Ice cubes??

Cuckoo…. Cuckoo

A couple of mornings ago when we were sitting on the back porch with our coffee, I heard the distinctive call of a yellow-billed cuckoo in a tree nearby, but I wasn't sure which tree and I couldn't see it.

Yesterday, when we went outside to drink our coffee, I brought my binoculars, just in case. I heard it again, and this time I was able to spot it in the top branches of the catalpa tree, eating caterpillars. 

Judging from the chewed-on appearance of the leaves, the tree appears to be full of caterpillars, which is what attracted the bird.

Indeed, the caterpillar of a variety of sphinx moth appears partial to the tree and caterpillar tree happens to be one of its names.

The cuckoo is also known as the rain crow, but unfortunately, the bird has not lived up to its name. The drought continues.

We collect water from the shower, rinse water from the dishes, and the rinse water from the washing machine to keep our tomatoes and peppers watered. But because we are on a well, we can’t water the yard and so it is starting to burn up under the unrelenting brutal heat, and...

 some of the smaller trees look as though they are dying.

I wish we had a Burt Lancaster to come and make rain for us, but we must depend on the Creator to do that, and I hope He does it soon.

June's Toodle-Loo

My friend Judy’s sister, June, died last month of cancer. Before she died, she had time to write most of her obituary and plan her funeral. I was very moved by what she wrote for the back of the order of her funeral service, and Judy gave me permission to duplicate it here:

At the end of each school day I would say "toodle-loo” to each child as they went out the door for home. It seemed like a softer way of saying "good-bye," with a feeling of "see you tomorrow."

So this is my "toodle-loo time."  A time to say the things in my heart, until we meet again.  I love you all, but even more important, God loves you more.  Remember John 3:16.  The Father loved us so much that He was willing to give up His Son; the Son, Jesus Christ, was willing to give up everything, even His life to pay for our sins, and the Holy Spirit brings us to faith and keeps us loving and trusting God and His promises. Keep your heart open to him.

I thank the Lord for all the blessings He has showered down on me, family, friends from little on to old age.  Memories are a gift from God that give us joy and a chance to laugh and cry.

Remember the things of this life are temporary; Heaven is forever.  Jesus is the only way to heaven!  Choose your friends wisely: Christian fellowship, read and study the Bible, pray, worship together and serve the Lord with gladness.

"Toodle-loo"

See you later. June

I am not sure whether we will see and recognize each other in Heaven, but I hope so. I hope that someday I will get to see Mom, Dad, our son -- and June -- in that sweet bye and bye.