Ducks
** These days creative inspiration has me desiring to write shorter snippets more often. Chances are what will happen is you will be inundated followed by a long desert spell of crickets. Just a warning.
Not quite able to visualize the droplets from my office window, I instead observed the leaves dipping abruptly with the weight of the rain, like a quick curtsy to Mother Nature for her gift of refreshing nourishment.
My YA (young adult) entered the room with that groggy look we all have pre-coffee/tea preparing to give me my morning toll hug. They stopped suddenly as their gaze was arrested toward the window.
Duck! They said.
There resting on the hill in our backyard was a wild male duck…a duck in a suburban backyard.
Popping up for my own view, I noticed the female nestled in the grass just a few short feet away from her mate. I assume they spotted our tiny pond and were trying to assess whether it would make a good nesting spot; however, as we locked eyes…humans to ducks…ducks to humans, they decided they preferred real estate with more privacy and took off over the house.
This is the second time wild ducks have been found in our backyard since the installation of our little pond almost 15+ years ago.
Days before the first sighting as we were filling the pond (a project for our nature loving tiny person), I was asked if I thought we would ever see any wildlife in our pond. I replied that we would be lucky if we could attract salamanders and frogs, but would probably see nothing bigger than that.
The next morning, this tiny person spotted two ducks (male and female) in the backyard. One of the many times over the course of my life that I have dared to answer a question with confidence about wildlife only to be proven to be full of malarkey.
I always feel a little thrill when any wildlife deem to visit our backyard (even the raccoons who managed to empty our pond) and toughens my resolve to continue to do battle with the bramble without the use of chemicals.
And it is with reverence that I dip my head in a curtsy of appreciation for the nourishment that Mother Nature provides for my nature-loving soul.
A Beautiful Thing - Knowledge
After the duck visit, we had an intense family debate on male and female duck names which could only be rectified with Google. A male duck is called a drake, a female duck is called a hen, and mallard refers to the species of duck (always thought it meant female). We intend to roll out our newly-acquired knowledge at parties to which we are shockingly invited to very few.
Is that where you spread your wild flower seeds? I really like the wilding look of your back yard hill. I bet all kinds of sweet little critters call it home!
Ducking awesome! lol