Absorbing Nature

  Sometimes it is so easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of the day. We all have our routines and schedules that keep us on the move. Throw a kid or two into the mix and it seems one scrambles to find just a minute of peace and quiet. In that minute what do you do? What is it that you crave for just a minute or two of?

  For the last week here in North Carolina it has been extremely humid. That translates into afternoon thunderstorms. My once empty rain barrel is now overflowing with nature’s juice, and my plants are happy once again. But that rain does something to my mojo. It throws off my day and leaves me scrambling for the next item on the list of things to do. That to-do list seems to get longer and longer. The end is nowhere in sight.

  The last few weeks have been very hectic in Kelly’s world. Many times I’m still working on that said to-do at nine at night. I cannot tell you the last time I sat down and had a good long writing session. Most nights I’m lucky to come up with a paragraph or two before my brain shuts down.

 Today was different. The skies turned gray and thunder rumbled off in the distance. It was only a matter of time before the afternoon storm rolled through. But today I changed my routine. I made myself sit and not do. The Charmed One and I sat out on our front porch. We just sat. We relaxed and watched the rain fall. The tall pines swayed with the wind. Leaves of plants drooped from the initial heaviness of the raindrops only to perk back up again as the droplet fell and disappeared into the ground below. It was nice to just sit, to absorb.

  Four feet away from my chair is a hummingbird feeder. Yesterday it was nearly empty, so I replenished their sweet concoction. I thought it strange because I had just cleaned and changed their sugar water a few days before. As we sat out there today I realized why it was empty the day before. Even though the rain poured down those pesky hummingbirds kept up their ritual of trying to be the owner of that one feeder. I thought that we had only one or two hummingbirds until then. As we sat and watched battle after battle, heard scolding upon scolding, and crashing of wing upon wing we realized there are way more than one or two little guys and gals. That particular feeder has three perches, and at one time all fighting stopped. All three perches were occupied and three more tiny hummers hovered and waited. It was purely a sight to see.

When I went to replenish their food this girl visited!

  I think that was my reward for finally slowing down. I loved sitting there, absorbing. My minute of peace and quiet turned into a half hour. After watching the birds I came away with two thoughts. One-I wish I had a tenth of their energy. Two-All that fluttering and fighting exhausted me! ;)

  As a side note we have five feeders set out, but this seems to be the one they all want. I can’t really blame them, it is situated under a covered porch! And they did all this with the dogs right beside us.

  What do you do when you get a minute or two to relax? Is there one set thing you do, like read or watch birds? What is the weather like in your neck of the woods? Does life’s hustle and bustle wear you down?