How is this even possible? How can one tiny body hold together in the utter contradiction between wings flapping up to 70 times per second yet beak still enough to thread a toothpick-size hole? No wonder her heart is likely beating more than 1200 times a minute! (Yes, “her.” This is a female ruby-throated.) She is gone now. And her spouse and friends. The feeders are in and cleaned, waiting for the first warmth of spring to draw the them back to my front yard. I will join them dancing with the spirit.

Whoever you are, you are human. Wherever you are, you live in the world, which is just waiting for you to notice the holiness in it. –Barbara Brown Taylor

Do not look for rest in any pleasure, because you were not created for pleasure: you were created for spiritual joy. And if you do not know the difference between pleasure and spiritual joy you have not yet begun to live. –Thomas Merton

Birds taking flight–especially large birds. I swoon at their ballet. Rarely do I manage to capture a split second of it for my eternal amazement. Me, on the other hand? So burdened with concerns and things…. STORAGE … Things! Burn them, burn them! Make a beautiful fire! More room in your heart for love, for the trees! For birds who own nothing–the reason they can fly! –Mary Oliver

Western honey bees are not native to North America, but like so many immigrants, they have proved their worth. They help pollinate many crops, not to mention the wildflowers and the many flowering plants with which we beautify our yards. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, one honey bee colony “can gather about 40 pounds of pollen and 265 pounds of nectar” annually. Here in the south, much of the honey that pollen and nectar converts into ends up on our biscuits. Simple pleasure! Truly our lives flow with milk and honey. Give thanks.