What do you do to veg out? I write poems for my grandkids.

Here's the latest.

A Poem for All My Little Bird Watchers

Cardinals and sparrows don't share well. 

I was cleaning off my desk today and came across a poem I obviously started when I was recovering from my rotator cuff surgery. How could I tell? Easy. I obviously wrote it with my left hand when I wasn't allowed to move my right arm -- at least the beginning. I apparently added some stanzas later after I could lift my arm and use my right hand again.

I truly enjoy writing little poems for my grandkids. This one is about the birds that come to my feeder. How I love them. We took the feeders down for the summer. We start to attract bears in the late spring and that means they have to go. We don't want any bears near our bee hives! Read more here...

Time Out for a Birdie Break

Check out all the feathered friends at Camp Kreitzer where grandkids come to play and feed the birds.

Praise God in His Creation

Time out for a nature break. I can't help it. I'm sitting at my computer but I'm totally distracted by a pair of bluebirds nesting in a birdhouse attached to a pole about thirty feet from my window. There are four little blue eggs in the nest (They resemble the picture below.) and my little granddaughter and I have been going out to check every day to see if the babies have arrived. The house is tiny and I was surprised the bluebirds chose it since there is a bigger one nearby. But I'm glad they did because the other is obscured by tree limbs, but this offers a clear view and a continuous source of entertainment.

Usually the momma is sitting in the nest with her head sticking out the door. I keep a pair of binoculars on the desk and often spend a few minutes watching her. As a matter of fact I can see her head right now peeping out and her mouth is open as if she's yawning. Maybe even momma birds get impatient for the big day. And she is such a good little mother. The daddy often perches outside as if talking to her. "How's it going in there, Hon? Any progress? How much longer?" But babies come when they are ready.

Every now and then a hawk perches in the pine tree overlooking the house. Once I saw him at the door of the birdhouse and ran out to chase him away. Hopefully he will not be back when the babies arrive. I know, I know, he has to eat...but let him catch a field mouse, not the bluebirds.

What did hawks eat before the fall when the world was fresh and new and perfect without sin? Did animals prey on one another then, or did all creatures eat from the fruit of the land? Did the lion truly lie down with the lamb in the garden of Eden?

When I reflect on our beautiful world, it lifts my mind and heart to the Creator and I spontaneously rejoice with the psalmist:

Praise the Lord from the heavens, praise him in the heights;

Praise him, all you his angels, praise him, all you his hosts.

Praise him, sun and moon; praise him all you shining stars.

Praise him, you highest heavens, and you waters above the heavens.

Let them praise the name of the Lord, for he commanded and they were created.

He established them forever and ever.

(Psalm 148:1-6)

And then I add my own words of praise:

Praise him, gentle bluebird as you sit upon your nest.

Praise him, robin redbreast in the peach tree.

Praise him, happy mocking bird, singing from the top of the flagpole.

Praise the Lord, tiny humming bird drinking at the feeder.

All you winged birds, praise the God who made you!

Take a break from bad news! Matthew 6:26

With lots of people (including me) concerned over (take your choice - no limit): abortion, contraception, the economy, swine flu, global warming, the scandal at Notre Dame, (Sigh!) Arlen Specter's defection to the Democratic party, the upcoming filibuster-proof Senate, heretics in the Church, capital punishment, same-sex marriage, Georgetown and other wicked Catholic schools, (Whew!) the Vagina Monologues, pollution, teen suicide, homosexuals recruiting kids, hate speech used to deny free speech, Planned Parenthood promoting lust, terrorism, weapons of mass destruction. (Sheesh, time for a break.)

Bad news will always be with us until the second coming when the Lord returns to separate the sheep from the goats. In the meantime it's important to remember and ponder Matthew 6:26.

Look at the birds in the sky. They do not sow or reap, they gather nothing into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them....Learn a lesson from the way the wild flowers grow. They do not work; they do not spin. Yet I assure you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was arrayed like one of these.

In the interests of practicing what I preach I've been watching the birds today (and doing a little gardening). A little brown wren was perched outside my office window before Mass singing his heart out. I studied him through binoculars and could see his little mouth moving up and down as he warbled - a Pavarotti of the bird world. And what a cheerful song - no Pagliacci for him. After this went on for about fifteen minutes another little wren joined him (Ah, it was a love song!) and they flew off together. Thank God for Spring!

Later in the morning when I was checking my email another pair of birds came to offer entertainment: an eastern bluebird couple. I have two birdhouses nailed to support posts left over from a fence demolished during a windstorm last winter. Every spring the bluebirds check out the larger house, but never stay. I thought when we were tearing down the fence that, perhaps, that would improve the chances of enticing the bluebirds. Maybe the fence rails offered a perch for larger predatory birds and scared them off. Indeed, that may have been the problem because all day the two have been going in and out of the house. I hope they are moving in and not just eying the property. I haven't seen them carrying building materials, but I remain optimistic.

My last sighting for the day was a brief one. A ruby-throated hummingbird came by to see whether the strawberry-shaped feeder was up yet. It isn't, but it will be just as soon as I can cook up some nectar and let it cool for my delightful little friend.

I hope you will take scripture literally today, like me, and "look at the birds in the sky" with a thankful heart. It will lower your blood pressure and bring a smile to your lips. How can it not?