Solitude On My Deck. #19

Good morning on this cloudy Saturday! It is the first day of October, a new month, a new beginning, yet a continuation of the old as well. It is autumn. October is probably the first month that many people think of when autumn is mentioned. It is the month when the most beautiful of fall colors is present in many areas, including where I live. Autumn has been a bit different for us this year.

Except for some very cool days, it has been generally warmer than normal. Not by a lot, but it has been a nice autumn so far. And October is supposed to be above normal temperatures for us as well. That does not mean hot weather since normal temperatures are much cooler in October. But it should still be nice. I am sure that I will still be wearing a jacket though, something I have already started doing a couple weeks back.

The last few days have been very nice. Yesterday our high was 68F (20C), our warmest day for quite a while. The forecast that was out this morning was for a sunny day and 65F (18C). However, it is cloudy, windy and cool. But there is no snow on the ground, so I am happy. However, I was hoping for sunny, warm days on Monday and Tuesday, which was the original forecast.

I wanted to work on my new bird feeder poles. I did not have everything I needed yesterday, so put off working on them until Monday, which is my regular shopping day. That was a mistake obviously. Oh well. I sat outside enjoying the day and the birds. The temporary feeder idea is working well, though it does have some negative points too. But the chickadees and nuthatches are using it.

It is fun to watch them. They are so small. And they spend so much energy to open one little sunflower seed. Hardly seems worthwhile. But they seem happy to do it. That is solitude. A couple of the chickadees are brave enough to land on me, my arm and on my head, if I am wearing a hat. A nuthatch will do that also. He will hang over the brim of my hat and look at me. They enjoy hanging upside down anyway. That is solitude.

A couple of the older blue jays will land beside me on the railing of the deck, look at me and then go down for a peanut. That too is solitude. It is nice when they are comfortable with me being out there with them. I talk to them. They always say something in return. That is solitude.

There was a light wind yesterday as well and it would rustle the leaves and send many leaves swirling through the air from the tops of the trees and down to the ground. Yellow and gold, browns and reds, all twirling through the air. Some landing on the grass, some landing on my deck. That is solitude.

A little white-throated sparrow came hopping onto the deck too, plus my first junco of autumn landed on the deck to look around. There are still a few yellow-rumped warblers around, making a chipping sound as they talk to each other in the trees. That is solitude. Thank you for joining me today. Have a wonderful first day of October and God bless!

Steve and Muffin.

©2022 Steve McLeod.