It's early September, and already there are signs that things are changing.
Wild grapes are starting to ripen, and overhead,
blue-winged teal have passed in swift flight, heading for their winter home.
This time of year, many of our feathered visitors are fairly new to the world.
A young red-bellied woodpecker balances with his stubby tail
as his long tongue probes for treasures between the boards on our deck...
before contemplating the food in the feeder.
Newly fledged purple finches come singly and in groups.
They seem unafraid;
I nearly had to chase one away to fill the bird feeder yesterday.
Their flight skills haven't been honed yet,
and we root them on as they flutter in the air, trying to find a perch.
Aren't landings tricky?
Young titmice find dozens of ways to entertain themselves...
and us.
These young birds will be here through the winter, but the hummingbirds are preparing for their long migration south. They swarm the feeders, like teenagers at an iphone sale, the wind from their tiny wings rustling petals of the cleome below, and fanning our faces when we stand close. They drink from the feeders and the surrounding flowers as if their life depended on it, which in fact it may; a third of them will be lost in their grueling upcoming flight over the ocean.
We'll miss their chatter and the hum of their wings, their brilliant flashes of color and startling animation.
In our changing world, it's good to know one constant. The Savior who loves us and gave His life for us, is always true, and extends His mercy day after day, in every season.
For the Lord is good and His love endures forever;
His faithfulness continues though all generations.
