Saturday, November 16, 2013

Hummingbirds in November

When they dug the hole to repair the sewer pipe early this month, we had to uproot three of the winter-flowering jasmine that grace the stairwell railing by the back door.  They'll be replanted, but meanwhile, one remains in full health, and full bloom.

The jasmine's yellow blossoms brighten a drab corner of the yard, the only cheering color in these wet, mid-November days.  This morning I saw another flash of color--a brilliant, green hummingbird feeding at the jasmine. 

In the 46 years we've lived here, I'd never before seen a hummingbird there.  As I posted earlier, one was feeding at the scarlet crocosmia that I was painting in August.   And the feeder I'd filled day-before-yesterday near the kitchen window already is down an inch, a sign there's been hummer activity there. 

We've put the ashes of two of our late dogs--Sebastian and Mozart--beneath the daffodils planted in our sidewalk gardens out front.  I'm certain their spirits inhabit the spring blooms that bring cheer to our passing neighbors.

Not to seem macabre, but the blooming jasmine is right next to the grave of Maggie, the sailor dog I wrote about last week.  I wonder--are some of Maggie's no-longer-needed molecules feeding that hummingbird through the jasmine's roots and blossoms?


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