The last few days have been absolutely glorious. (I do love the word glorious!) Yesterday it was 70 something degrees and perfect weather for taking a camera and wandering around.
My husband pointed out that we had a pair of geese standing on a sandbar; on the river that flows through our farm. We had been watching the large flocks fly overhead on their way north; so it was a treat to see a pair that had decided take a break on the river.
I am hopeful that this pair, that seems perfectly matched, will decide to take up residence for the season in our area. In the past we have had resident geese and it is so much fun to watch them when they have goslings. I find it to be really neat that geese actually pair up for life. I have no idea how they go about finding their perfect mate. But as they stay together they must be a good match.
I finally remembered to take my camera on my walk yesterday. Every time I walked past the plum thicket alongside the road; I loved seeing this nest just waiting in the trees. I cannot wait for spring and summer when, hopefully, a bird will decide to reuse it as a home. If they don’t use it for a home, perhaps they could at least use it for a temporary hideout from a predator of some sort. My husband tells me it probably will not be reused but I am ever hopeful.
As I journeyed my way back home I could hear the sound of thousands of birds singing in the trees along the river. The closer I got, the louder the noise became. It really made me wonder how many birds it took to make that much noise. I soon discovered how many it does take…..
There were so many Redwing Blackbirds sitting in those tree branches that they looked like leaves. It was an amazing sight when they decided it was time to leave. A rush of wings, the sky dotted with an amazing amount of birds, the air echoing with the cries of all those birds …… and they were gone.
So much of life is like that. Moments that are precious are gone in a rush of wings and a few last cries. I guess it is a reminder to cherish those moments when they are here. Take the time to really enjoy them before they are gone in a blur of passing time. Realize when God has given you a friend, spouse, or family member that is a good match for you and let them know that you love them. Enjoy the journey that is life.
Memories are the key not to the past,
but to the future.
Corrie Ten Boom
Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/memories.html
Ask me how much that I like the picture titled “The Road Home”!!! One thousand times one thousand times of likes! That is how much! I hope that pair stay on your farm! I would be so excited for you! Eagles mate for life too! The Decorah eagles are live on the computer now. Just certain times, but I believe that at least one egg has been laid. Seeing the eagles made me so sad not to have my sweet and overly talkative students! I have not gone yet to say my big Dutch word in the office. I was on my way and accidently stopped at an Antique Mall that was on my route to my school! Do you think that three Antique Malls in one week is considered going overboard? If you were here…we would go to at least FIVE!
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So glad you liked “The Road Home” that one is also my favorite….maybe because I love where it leads. You would have loved being here the other day….we had 5 eagles in the bottom field. Two were juveniles and did not yet have their white heads and tails. When you get to using your Dutch words let me know how that goes lol.
Oh yes…..definitely five Antique Malls. I love those places….you never know what you need till you see it there. (using the term need quite loosely.)
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The Dutch words have brought me much joy and laughter. The stares are worth it! I sent you a text earlier from my phone about the eagles! It does not show that it went through to Iowa!! I was just telling you that eagles also mate for life! If I had been there, I would have been so excited! I would have been staked out in that bottom field! Five eagles…I cannot even imagine! Well…the antique mall in our suburb is not a good one. I thought sure that it had improved since I had not been there for over a year. It is uppity and snobby and very over-priced. AND NO JUNK ITEMS! Not my kind of place. I like the Antique Malls in Fort Worth and Arlington the most…they have a little bit of everything! You definitely would like them and surely find something that you need!!!!!!
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Such a beautiful walk it must be…in the hustle bustle of a metro, I don’t even know how it would feel to be in such a peaceful place!
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I have been in the hustle and bustle of Washington DC for a short week this past summer. I loved it while I was there but it is so good to get back home to where the noisiest things are the birds, the wind, some tractors and a little traffic on the road past our place. I am truly a country girl/ small town girl at heart.
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I can totally feel you…I keep telling myself that one day soon enough I’ll buy a house in those exquisite looking but small country sides…
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You would love it!
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🙂
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Lovely post and walk :)x
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Thank you Samantha. And the walk was so good. I had to enjoy walks these past few days as they tell us we are getting 12-18 inches of snow starting tonite and into Saturday. Just a reminder we live in Iowa……
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Stay warm and safe then…that’s an awful lot of snow! :)x
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I know…..it is not nice of me but I am hoping it “tracks” a different direction than us!
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Can’t say I blame you – we are having Storm Doris at the moment. I was rather hoping we were finished with winter weather..
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Our snow has started!! and it is already going sideways. Oh well I guess it is only February yet. Stay safe with Storm Doris!
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Thank you, hope all stays well with you too :)x
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Great post and pictures, Faye. As usual a great message- a partner is a partner for life.
Susie
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Thank you so much Susie. I love that geese partner for life. It is such a good lesson.
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I loved walking with you near your home. I didn’t realize you had a river! A river!!!! We looked and looked for a house with a mountain stream, but house and stream never matched. I’m happy here, and we walk to the creek most days, so everything is fine. I remember how excited I was when the red winged blackbirds returned to Long Island. They weren’t in huge flocks, but they hung out in the marshy weeds at the water’s edge. Spring was on the way.
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Yes we have a river. It is a small river called the Little Rock which feeds into the Rock River. On dry years you can walk across it at certain places and it resembles more of a creek. The last couple years it has been higher due to farmers tiling fields and a little more rainfall. My husband walks out there everyday and when my youngest son comes home that is the first place he heads for.
I love those red winged blackbirds. They let me know Spring is on it’s way.
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Rivers, creeks, streams — they’re all good. Glad you have such a nice one.
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Beautiful and Glorious! xxx
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Glorious just seemed like the perfect word for the day and the sights along the way.
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What a wonderful post Faye. I loved your photos – especially that road to home. The Redwing Blackbirds head to our area every Spring and spend the Summer here. I have captured some great photos of them. Your posts are so down to earth and I love them. Thanks for sharing your busy and wonderful life with all of us. Have a great day. xoxo
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It was such a good day. I had been eyeing that nest for the last two weeks when I walked past it and this time I remembered the camera. When you really look there is so much beauty everywhere and so much to learn from it.
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Nature is brimming over with beauty. Those who live in big cities are missing the awe and wonder of nature.
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That is so true. There is even beauty in the “browness” of fall and spring.
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You did a fantastic job of combining more than one prompt–each one matched to the other. Bravo! And by all means, keep up the great writing.
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It was rather fun trying to incorporate different prompts. As I walked I tried keeping those prompts in mind and how I could use them. And Thank you!
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I love that photo of the birds in the trees – so many of them! I don’t think I have ever seen that many wild birds in a group. You do live in an amazing place!
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It was so amazing how many there were…..and that was just a couple trees full. The rest of the trees also had that many. When they took flight the sky was black and looked like a cloud. The sound was so cool…..just a whoosh of wings.
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Nature is pretty spectacular sometimes!
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It sure is!
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Glorious is how I described the day this morning to my daughter! It was a spectacular day, indeed! The birds were singing with abandon all day. Lovely.
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Some days are just so glorious! At this point we have gone from glorious to blizzard….in 24 hours. This is so typical Iowa! It does keep it interesting.
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What a great reminder for me to cherish the moment (or season) that I am in. I often rush it past way too often.
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It is so easy to rush past! I have the same problem myself.
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How absolutely beautiful this post it. Not just the photographs – although they’re little breath-takers, but your words too. By the time I’d read to the end I was filled up with a feeling of wanting to cry with thanks for all the blessings I had, and you’re included in those blessings too Chicken.
Sending love ❤ and squidges ~ Cobs. x
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Sometimes life is just so good. For me it helps to really notice all the little blessings on those days that don’t always feel so good.
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We have a koi pond in our apartment complex and every autumn and spring some ducks come to have a break here. I’ve never seen a pair with ducklings, but I saw a couple swimming around and playing yesterday. I still hope, but I don’t believe they can nest here, as it’s a dog- and cat-friendly community, not the best fit for ducks.
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If they were wood ducks you could put up a wood duck house. Then they might stay.
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This is interesting! I assume they are mallard ducks.
By the way, your pictures are great! The one with a lot of birds on a tree is my favourite.
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I just could not get over how many there were! And thank you for the compliment. I have been taking your advice…..snapping away so I get a good one.
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I usually take a lot of pictures, but the only issue is that it can be so hard to choose one afterwards.
We’ve just watched a video series about birds – Earthflight. This one is the best series about birds, that I’ve ever seen and it’s focused on migrations. It’s available on DVD from Amazon.
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It was in the 70s here yesterday too…oh such a sign of things to come!! That’s interesting about the birds. I had that same experience a couple of weeks ago. I was leaving work and I could hear so many birds and when I looked for them they looked just like your picture. Like hundreds of them in the tree…then they all left the tree at the same time and they did that magical swaying dance that they do and then landed in another tree. They waited til every bird landed in the tree, sang for a bit and then flew up and around again til they found another tree to land it. It was quite a sight. I took out my phone to record it and wouldn’t you know they decided to stay in the tree they had last landed it. I kept waiting and waiting for them to take off again but they didn’t and my hands were getting so cold, I finally gave up. But it was quite an experience to watch. I hope the geese stay there too!! 🙂
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Well, we got our snowstorm yesterday! Sideways snow. The weather man was wrong on the amount though so that was a good thing.
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I heard that and thought of you! We got quite a downpour of rain tonight but fortunately no snow!! I’m glad they were wrong about the amount.
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Great shots!!
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Thank you so much! I am learning. Got this camera a year ago and still don’t have a clue what it can all do.
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Beautiful thoughts…a good match gives such happiness & balance. Thanks be to God.
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So much to be grateful for!
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