Hummingbirds, Daffodils, Cats, Antibodies, and Snow on the Mountains
A week (or so) in photos
It feels like we’ve had both winter and spring in the same week here in Southern California. The first of the daffodils have sprung from the earth. And we were simultaneously blasted by a ferocious winter storm which flooded the streets, dropped hail, and left a magnificent patina of snow on the local mountains.
Those daffodils seem to emerge earlier and earlier each year. But their bright little faces bring me so much joy. Most of them were planted years ago and return spring after spring. When I initially placed them in my garden, I did not fully realize that the different varieties would appear at different times. These, the narcissus assoanus are the first of the bunch.
I almost felt like I was in Alaska, or Colorado, this week while I was out on my daily hikes in Peter’s Canyon, our local wildlife preserve. The Santa Ana mountains, draped with a lacy shawl of cloud cover and a thick layer of snow, popped out of a blue, blue sky, and absolutely took my breath away with their beauty.
From the hill at the upper right (in the above photo), if you turn around exactly 180 degrees from the view of the mountains, on a clear day you can see the glimmer of the Pacific Ocean on the horizon. The buildings you see silhouetted against the shoreline are those of Newport Beach.
A century or so ago, when the settlers began to cultivate orange groves in these hills, they also planted eucalyptus trees as wind breaks to protect their crops. While most of the orange groves are now gone, many of the eucalyptus remain. I have always been struck by the “skin” of the eucalyptus trees. The way it creases at the elbows of the limbs almost looks human to me. I really love the energy of these trees.
My kitties are my precious loves. Little Miss Freyja likes to perch in her elevated kitty cup right beside my desk. From this vantage point, she can keep an eye on the activity at the bird feeders just outside the french doors. I have always thought that Freyja’s eyes were quite unusually blue for a kitty, rather like the Tahitian waters.
My husband and I had a bit of good news this week. We had COVID in March, and we still have antibodies. This bodes well for us since it is not quite our turn to get our vaccines. But I also think that it is very good news for the vaccine because it is indicative that antibodies can be long-lasting.
And, I will leave you with one final hummingbird shot. This little one is a female Allen’s Hummingbird. Unlike the male in the top photo, she only develops a few iridescent spots on her throat. I had to hang several of these little swings for the hummingbirds to “wait their turn” on until one of the feeding ports opens up.
I have six “jumbo” (48 oz.) feeders in my yard and have been surprised at how often I am having to refill them at this time of year. At the height of the summer, the birds will drain all of them in a single day. Right now, I am refilling about two of them a day. I’m not sure if we are having an early migration or if more of the birds just over-wintered this year.
Thank you, Dennett, for the “week in photos,” SNAPSHOTS challenge.
Erika Burkhalter is a yogi, neurophilosopher, cat-mom, photographer, and lover of travel and nature, spreading her love and amazement for Mother Earth’s glories, one photo, poem or story at a time. (MS Neuropsychology, MA Yoga Studies). Erika is also an editor for Mindfully Speaking.
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Photos and story ©Erika Burkhalter. All rights reserved.