Window on Nature. Steve Apps Photo

 

On these cold, snowy, often dreary days of midwinter, cabin fever, enhanced by fears of COVID, comes visiting.  Ruth has discovered a remedy for this problem. A simply remedy.  Look out the window.  In front of our bedroom window is a bush about five feet tall.  On a sunny morning, little birds gather there. A bunch of them.  Ruth watches them and listens to their chipping, which is loud enough to hear through the window. She imagines they are talking to each other. 

“Did you hear about Charlie, he rammed into a window the other day.  He was a bit dazed,” says loud chipping, Ethel.

“Charlie is usually dazed,” says Joyce who continues, “I found just the best bird feed. Only a few doors down, too.”  Just as each bird seems to be talking at once, a pair of cardinals, a male and a female appears.  The little birds fly off, and now Ruth listens in on the Cardinal talk. “Just about time to start whistling in the morning,” says Clarence, the bright red male.  “Days are getting longer.”

“Do you have to whistle so loud?” asks Clarence’s mate. “You are such a show-off.”

And then there are squirrels, what fun they seem to be having on these cold snowy days.  Chasing after each other through the snow.  Climbing up the maple trees and leaping from snowy branch to snowy branch.  Digging in the snow for some food stored away last fall.  Climbing on the empty bird houses.  Curious.  Never resting it seems.  Not bothered by the snow one bit. Or the cold.

A pair of rabbits sits by the woodpile, watching the squirrels, one squirrel says to the other, “Don’t those squirrels ever get tired?”

When you tire of looking at the four walls of your house, look out the Window.  You might be surprised what you see.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: What would we do without windows?  A joy to see nature in winter.

WHERE TO BUY MY BOOKS:

You can buy my books at your local bookstore, order online from bookshop.org, or purchase from the Friends of the Patterson Memorial Library in Wild Rose—a fundraiser for them. Phone: 920-622-3835 for prices and ordering, or contact the librarian: barnard@wildroselibrary.
Patterson Memorial Library
500 Division Street
Wild Rose, WI 54984.
www.wildroselibrary.org

If you live in the western part of the state, stop at Ruth’s home town, Westby, visit Dregne’s.  and look at their great selection of my books. Order a book from them by calling 1-877-634-4414. They will be happy to help you.  If you live in northcentral Wisconsin, stop at the Janke bookstore in Wausau (phone 715-845-9648).  They have a large selection of my books.