In the cool of the morning life again starts,
In the cool of the morning nature becomes art,
In the cool of the morning something departs,
The cool of this morning has broken my heart.
by Tami
It started as a normal summer day. By 6:30 a.m. the first of my morning chores were completed…the chicken house was opened and cleaned for the morning’s egg-laying activities…
No more rooms at the Inn!!
….Benedict and the hens were out to free range for the day, as the patriarch of the flock danced and strutted to remind the ladies of his presence…chicken feed was scattered about to supplement their free ranging…the dogs were fed…and so on, and so on. Finally, it was time to sit with a cup of coffee before starting out for the rest of the morning chores.
As I was pouring my cup, WHAM!!! A loud, familiar, yet more striking, noise came from the windows facing northwest. The man who really tames this forest, looked out and confirmed a bird had flown into the solid illusion of open space. It was laying on a cushion from our patio swing. Any bird that flies into the window is an urgent concern to me. Given time, and the safety of a secluded environment, most get over the confusion of what is probably a massive headache, and are able to be released back to their avian lives. Unfortunately, this beauty was laying on its back, feet curled….lifeless.
As suspected, it was a big bird. Normally the beauties hitting the windows are more like finch size…this one was dramatically larger…and so beautiful!!
A beautiful, beautiful tragedy!
How gorgeous is this!
God is quite an AMAZING artist!!!
She was called a Flicker. She was an ant eating woodpecker. She was a welcomed friend that I would frequently see, and hear on our trees. I marveled at her beauty from afar, and am totally amazed at her stunning beauty at close examination. I will miss seeing my friend in the mornings, and the early evenings. I will miss the familiar knocking that causes me to look up and seek a glimpse of her. I hope she doesn’t have young ones in a nest somewhere waiting on her return, it is later in the season so hopefully her young have left the nest.
Photo by Dennis Paulsen, posted on Slater Museum of Natural History website.
If you want to read more about her, check out this website… http://slatermuseum.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-ant-eating-woodpecker.html
Goodbye my friend!!
Thank you for sharing my morning!
Your friend from Oregon,
Tami
****UPDATE***** I realize I left you all with the sadness of the morning…let me add a little encouragement with some light-heartedness…how about the newness of life beginning with this cute little critter….
Build Me a Dream 
Comments on: "The Cool of the Morning" (2)
Tami, such a beautiful tribute to a stunning creature. I hope another will come fill your heart some day. I have not seen an inchworm for years; they really ARE adorable and amusing. Nice way to end a sad post. A meet up is somewhere in our futures..let’s plan one if you are of a mind to!
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Thank you Ellen! I hope there will be another too, they definitely are not as common as many of the other birds that grace us with their presence. Glad you liked the little inch-worm. We can talk on FB through private message about the meet up..too bad we’re not going (I assume you’re not going) to Crazy Acres for the SDP Retreat
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