Letting Go of the Bay Leaf: Pygmy owl

Showing posts with label Pygmy owl. Show all posts

Sunday, January 2, 2022

Mosaic Monday #162: 2021 - That's a Wrap!

Thirty minutes to midnight on December 31, and I have been pondering the year that was 2021. How to capture 12 months, 52 weeks, 365 days? 12 favorite posts? Key accomplishments? The best photos of the year? Or perhaps a focus on loose ends? Resolutions for the New Year? So many options!

The temptation to make a matrix is almost overwhelming, but it is possible to over-engineer these things!! So, let's just go and see how it develops!

Our year was filled with many blessings, and I can think of no better way to start this than to give thanks for my rock, my partner in crime, the guy who puts up with my many foibles with a knowing grin. 2021 marked 30 years of marriage, and the adventures continue - hiking, skiing, camping, traveling.

After 2 years' absence, we finally returned to the UK and, with great relief and joy, were reunited with my in-laws. Weekly video chats are better than a phone call or no communication at all, but hardly substitute for a full-on body hug at the airport! We made up for lost time, walking in the countryside, visiting our old haunts, and a week-long getaway to the Skipton area. I know I shed a tear or two, watching my in-laws stroll arm in arm in the woods near Skipton Castle.

Together with Man with Hat, I logged 105 miles of hiking, including three back-country camping trips. Trust me when I say it was downright difficult to choose one picture that represents the beauty, solitude and glory of Montana. In the end, I chose a photo that was taken by my nephew the day before we started our epic back-country camping trip in the Belly River. The picture below is in Glacier National Park - Hidden Lake with Bearhat Mountain in the background.

Did I mention 2021 was filled with blessings? In early August, #1 Son received the long-awaited news: he landed a job, a nuclear engineering position within the Idaho National Laboratory. I jumped up and down for joy; he has been in job search mode since May 2020, and all of us were thrilled for him that his patience and perseverance paid off! On December 21, just in time for Christmas, he was informed that his security clearance came through and that he would start work on January 17. Praise God!

It is inevitable, with adult children, that they will develop lives of their own, and family vacations get more challenging to arrange. So, we jumped on the chance to be together in Santa Fe in October. Each of us had our favorite aspect of the trip - Bandelier National Monument for Spousal Unit and me, Los Alamos for #1 Son, Mexican food almost every night for The Boyfriend.

But I think it is safe to say that the trip will be forever remembered as the site of The Engagement!

2021 was not all wine and roses. On April 28, my Mom went to heaven. I was so fortunate to spend time with her a couple of weeks before she died, and it was cathartic to write this post in her memory. Since then, she often crosses my mind. I miss her, and it makes me sad that she won't be here to see #1 Daughter get married. Mom, I love you, and I take some consolation in knowing you are watching over all of us!

One of my brothers had a heart attack in November, and I traveled to Ohio to visit him in the hospital. He is home now, but has a long road to recovery. Maybe it's an inescapable aspect of getting older, or maybe it is down to COVID, but it seems we hear more frequently about friends and family with serious illnesses, or worse. As I wrote in my December 5 post, "Life is not simple, or predictable. At any moment, life can turn upside down. I can't take any pleasure in the fact that it's someone else who is in the hospital, but I can count my blessings every day."

With that in mind, I turn my attention to 2022. How will I make the most of this year that lies in front of me like freshly fallen snow, untracked and ready to be explored? Some things are given, such as reveling in time with my Dear Neighbor Friend - skiing, walking, kayaking or chit-chat over a coffee.

I will probably do some cross-stitch. At last count, I have one project underway and at least six others to choose from! I also hope to try my hand at Spanish Blackwork.

I will continue volunteering - the 63rd Whitefish Winter Carnival kicks off formally next weekend. You'll also find me at the North Valley Food Bank, the Whitefish Historical Museum and serving as co-leader of the Flathead Chapter of Citizens' Climate Lobby!

You can be sure I will be outdoors, whether it is in the garden, hiking or kayaking. Who knows what new critters we will see? Each year we get a few surprises, such as the pygmy owl that crashed into our windows in June (and survived).

We are already planning travel for this year - beginning with a late February ski vacation/visit to my brother and sister-in-law in Utah (and we will pop in to see #1 Son on the way down and back). In the Spring, we will fly to the UK, partly to mark the 61st wedding anniversary of my in-laws in April!! After that, avoiding most of the "mud season" in Montana, we hope to finally complete the long-awaited family scuba vacation to Grand Cayman - we should have been there in May 2020 to celebrate the college graduation of #1 Son.

Sounds busy, doesn't it? Of course, contemplating a New Year is not just about WHAT we plan to do, but HOW we plan to do it. I thumbed through my prayer journal from the last 12 months, and the following words spoke to me: gratitude, faith, understanding, "do not be afraid", forgiveness, mercy, compassion, patience, discernment, good cheer, encouragement, letting go. A tall order, to be sure.

"Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around." LEO BUSCAGLIA

"If the will to walk is really present, God is pleased even with your stumbles." C.S. LEWIS

I hope and pray that, together, we can experience joy, thankfulness, compassion and good health throughout 2022. Happy New Year to you and yours!

Mosaic Monday

Welcome to Mosaic Monday, a weekly meme where we get together to share our photo mosaics and collages.

Please include at least one photo mosaic/collage in your post.

The link will be open from 1 p.m. Sunday until 11 p.m. Tuesday (U.S. Mountain time).

Remember to add the link to your Mosaic Monday post and not the one to your blog.

Please link back to this post so that your readers will be able to visit and enjoy more wonderful mosaics; taking the MM blog button from my sidebar is an easy way to link back.

As host I will visit every participant and leave a comment so that you know I stopped by.

Please try and visit as many other blogs as you can, especially those that join in later, so that everyone's creativity can be appreciated fully.

Thank you for joining in today and sharing your mosaics with us.

Sunday, July 4, 2021

Mosaic Monday #138: Jiggin' It in June

My goodness, my goodness, here it is July 4th! The summer is flying past like a kite caught in a tropical storm! You'll forgive me if we re-wind to June, right? The usual topics -- animals, flowers, cooking. But maybe you keep coming back because you enjoy my menu! Bon appetit!

As most of you know, our 'neighborhood' is a mecca for wildlife - but June delivered some new species!!! Always a thrill! One evening, I heard a loud bang on one of the kitchen windows. In the twilight, I could imagine a confused bird aiming for what it saw as a tree. I went out and looked on the deck and was shocked to find a very young Pygmy owl. I picked it up and its head fell forward. Not a good sign. I went inside for reinforcements.

Spousal Unit and #1 Son gathered 'round and we discussed options. As we talked, it started to wriggle a bit and click its beak. We decided to put it in a shoebox with a towel for support, and place the box outside a sliding glass door. #1 Son could monitor it. Within 30 minutes, it had recovered enough to perch on the side of the box, and not too long after, it flew away. We were all massively relieved. In the past, Spousal Unit and I have talked about how to deter bird strikes, and this convinced him that we should at least place some decals on key windows. I will keep you posted on the effectiveness of the method!

This past Monday, #1 Son spotted a critter on the patio, which he could not identify. He took a picture and then went outside to check it out. It proceeded to squeeze itself behind a tall plastic cabinet that we use for storing patio cushions. He had called us and sent pictures, and we couldn't figure out what it might be. So, he let it be, and by the time we arrived home, it had disappeared. I shared the photos with my Dear Neighbor Friend, and she suggested a groundhog. Interesting - I didn't know Montana had groundhogs. I went to the web and learned that Montana has two species of marmots, a relative of the groundhog. Aha! The yellow-bellied marmot is found at lower elevations than its cousin, the hoary marmot, so I surmised this to be the former.

And then there are the regulars - they deserve a spotlight too, right? I saw this rabbit when I was walking to my neighbor's house. It let me take video while it calmly ate grass.

It finally decided I was too close and took off. But I managed this still picture (not the best quality - my phone doesn't do distance and zoom) and was amused to see the size of its feet, not to mention the color - still white!

Following a hike, Spousal Unit and I took a scenic route home. A friend had told me the location of a field of blue camas, and Spousal Unit was kind enough to indulge my flower obsession. It paid off not only with the flowers, but a sighting of a small black bear.

Closer to home, the trail camera yielded some special deer photos - a fawn and a young buck.

As June approached, I told #1 Son about the turtle that shows up every year in early June. I am not sure he bought it. So, on June 8, when I announced the turtle was on the leach field, he was curious enough to come out for a look. As in past years, the turtle hung around for about three days and then disappeared. Until next year!

It always catches me off guard - how June accelerates from "brown" to "blooms" everywhere. I mentioned the Blue Camas above - here it is. This was a first for me.

I also find it fascinating that one can find many different plants within a mile or two of each other. Even an elevation gain of 400 feet can mean new species. Around here, the plants on top of the ridge bloom first. I always wonder about this: the snow is deeper the higher you go, but I suppose it also melts faster if the ridge is exposed. Whatever the reason, it's a sight to behold.

June temperatures allowed me to run outside, and occasionally I can't resist stopping to take a picture or two. I made a new discovery in the process. Bog bean. This plant was in the marsh, and to get a quality photo, I had to take it like a selfie - that's why you can see my leg in the background! Doesn't it seem that this aquatic beauty deserves a better name than "bog bean"?

To add to the floral delight, I found this orchid in our own back "yard" - a spotted coral root orchid.

And then there is Spousal Unit, who surprised me with a rainbow bouquet!

This month, #1 Son collaborated with me to make Firecracker Chicken Meatballs. So good!

We weren't quite as thrilled with the Corned Beef Hash Rustic Pie.

But the month sure had a sweet ending with this surprise bag of orange slices from my Spousal Unit!

Happy Fourth of July to all my fellow U.S. citizens!

A note to my fellow bloggers: I may be late commenting this week with family in town.

A note to all Mosaic Monday participants - I am taking a break NEXT WEEK; there will not be a post on July 11. See you on the 18th!