The Woman Who Held Birds

Day 34: This is another first, and I'm not sure who was more surprised, me or the Dark-eyed Junco at finding that his new "feeder" was warm to the touch. This photo is actually the second one I took, and is possibly a second bird. I had the first shot framed to fit a Chickadee, and when the first Junco landed, the top of its head was off the edge of the image. This bird sat there for some time before choosing a seed, unlike the Chickadees who I call "sorters." The sorters tend to scatter seed until they've found one to their liking, but Junco was very thoughtful about the process. Now I have to say that while Chickadees are known for being friendly, not all birds are as accepting of humans, and Juncos are not a bird you'd expect to have come to your hand. I think that by observing the 'dees eating safely from my palm, the Juncos finally accepted that I was not a serious threat. Even so, I never expected one to go this far.

For the record, I would like to enumerate the wild bird species which have come to my hand: Canada Jays (hard to avoid contact in the backcountry!), a Clark's Nutcracker, a Rufous Hummingbird, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Pine Siskins, Black-capped and Chestnut-backed Chickadees, Dark-eyed Junco and perhaps the most emotional contact of all, an injured Evening Grosbeak who I nursed back to health and returned to the wild. On the day before his release, he held hands with me for a good thirty seconds. I told Kevin yesterday, "This is how I want you to remember me: the woman who held birds." He even took photos of me with a Pine Siskin friend.

What is the measure of wealth? Maybe you made a million dollars before you were forty. I barely scrape by, spending more on birdseed than I do on "people food." I would not trade this for your millions even if I was starving. I am rich beyond measure, because I am the Woman Who Held Birds.