To his Hello
I prattled on about the baby red squirrel
The critter was slow
Not afraid
Would have allowed me to pick it up
Believe me
I wanted to
Yet good sense prevailed
I felt for the little fellow
Whose sibling was racing across the patio and up the cedar
With instinct
Intact
I have no idea what happened to this photogenic fourpaw that I met last spring.
Suspect it might have made a meal for a hawk or coyote.
What I’m sure of though, is that the rest of the family is alive and up to mischief.
Spied exiting our garage on a number of occasions, we found our boat cover in tatters.
I’ve changed.
Once upon a time….my mind would have been bombarded with negative thoughts.
I might have cursed the red squirrels, or found fault with somebody for leaving the garage door up, or grumbled about replacement cost.
This change in me has been seamless….one tiny step at a time.
Yesterday I embraced the opportunity to go talk to Freddie at his boat restoration business. I met him in spring when I’d taken the cover for a seam repair. We shared an I/Thou connection then, leaving a happy impression.
When I showed him the shredded canvas yesterday, he asked if I got my pellet gun out yet. I told him I’m not that kind of girl. He asked me to hold on while he had a guy pull up some boat cover photos and an estimate.
“My dog is in the car. Will it take long?”
“Go get your dog,” he said.
Henrietta thought the boat store was great fun!
And so did I.
Life has not changed.
My way of seeing has.
Ordinary life is the way.
A line from an old Gordon Lightfoot song, "Country life's the life for me, in ten more years I'll a pensioner be." A friend used to quip, "We're bypassing contentment on our quest for ecstasy." Andy Warhol spoke of people having their fifteen minutes of fame. Notwithstanding all that, today we see a picture of a pole-vaulting red squirrel hoping to become a social media "influencer!" Yes, tongue firmly in cheek. Yet, becoming an "influencer" is a big deal for a number of folks today. Young and old alike! The glam singers and movie stars might explain some of that striving, but we also see influencers putting huskies, brown bears and quite an assortment of family pets front and center in their efforts to influence. Perhaps a combo of fifteen minutes of fame and hopes to secure advertising revenue. "Oh give me a home, where the buffalo roam. And the deer and the antelope play..." It seems you have found the life with the best returns. Good stuff!