Crows, ravens, I love them all. How spectacular would it be to have tea with the king of the ravens.
Hold fast to dreams
For if dreams die
Life is a broken-winged bird
That cannot fly.
Hold fast to dreams
For when dreams go
Life is a barren field
Frozen with snow.
Dreams by Langston Hughes
This time of year is when I really miss all my babies that have crossed over the Rainbow Bridge.
I never felt as if I “owned” them; I always felt as if I was their caretaker and protector and that we were a loving family, so I was profoundly touched when I learned there was a word to describe that concept.
Kahu is a Hawaiian word with a deep spiritual meaning, as it implies that the person and their pet are connected on a spiritual level.
Kahu is a guardian; person who is entrusted with the safekeeping of something precious, a protector, steward, beloved attendant.
In Hawaiian culture, the relationship between a person and their pet is described as a kahu relationship.
That sounds about right, the way to describe what is most precious. The word kahu, and what it means, is incredibly beautiful, so much more accurate than being referred to as our furbaby’s “owner”.
Besides my sweet lizard, there’s another eligible bachelor vying for my attention…
A few days ago as I was tidying up the family room, I noticed some ODD movement on a big corn plant leaf (Dracaena fragrans Massangeana) near the patio doors. There was no breeze so it was a bit unsettling to watch the leaf move up and down. I hastily picked up the plant and placed it outside on the deck.
Out jumped this little guy! I don’t know how long he had been living there, well-camouflaged, but I thought the outdoors would be a more suitable environment.
Mr. Toad is a very handsome young man, but not all that photogenic. He’s a bit camera shy and kept running behind a pot while I was trying to snap a pic.
I guess he finds enough to eat because he and my lizard love seem to peacefully co-exist.
In most ancient civilizations, toads were synonymous with transformation and renewal. These mysterious creatures are capable of shedding their skins and reincarnating in new ones, signifying rebirth and regeneration. In Chinese folklore, they were believed to be spirits of blessing and prosperity for everyone they encountered. Native American traditions also hold spiritual convictions about toads, which they view as messengers of the soul world.
Attracting toads to our garden naturally controls pests and enhances biodiversity, creating a healthier and more balanced ecosystem.
Frogs, lizards, toads; there’s lots of reptile love around here!
Meet my boo, my bae, my sweetie:
Every morning he waits for me on the deck by the patio doors. Sometimes I almost trip over him because he’s always underfoot, trailing me from the deck to the garden and back again.
When I first noticed this behavior, I thought he had somehow become stranded on the deck and was asking for help, so I put him him in a box and released him on the grass, but he came right back.
He turns his head back and forth as if he’s listening to me, “Good morning, little guy!” “Is it hot enough for you?” “Here’s a bowl of fresh water in case you’re thirsty.”
At night, he looks through the screen door, but that’s where I draw the line. He’s not coming in, not even if he shows off with a few sets of those lizard-y pushups. #boundaries
One occurrence would be nothing to think about, but this happens daily, so I guess I’m in a relationship now.
I brought him a green hornworm from my tomato plant and he gobbled it up. Since my love language involves feeding and caregiving, that made me happy (and a little grossed out).
Most of my research says that lizards symbolize resurrection and rebirth. In Egyptian hieroglyphics, the symbol of the lizard was representative of plentiful abundance. A lizard in one’s house is often seen to represent an old friend or acquaintance.
Gotta go, my boo just came by for breakfast. 🐛
There are a lot of doves around here AND a lot of hawks. I’ve actually watched them hunt doves, and because they’re not the most swift birdies, it’s not even a contest. The hawk wins every time. It’s a traumatizing experience for ME because there’s nothing I can do to save them from their terrible fate.
Yesterday, I noticed some ripe grapes in one of the arbors in my garden so I climbed on a ladder to snip the cluster when I spied a rough twig-filled nest wedged on top between the vines.
Camouflaged so adorably was a mama dove sitting in the nest looking right at me with her big round eyes. I think there are two eggs in her nest.
I grabbed the grapes and climbed down as fast as I could to not further disturb or scare mom.
I’m not sure this is the most secure location to raise a family so I’ll do all I can to keep them safe. “You can trust me, mama dove!”
A dove pair may raise two families in a single summer. Mourning doves mate for life – about seven to ten years. If a mate dies, the remaining dove will persevere in its futile attempts to evoke a response from its lifeless mate. Driven by hunger, thirst, threat, or nightfall, the bird will ultimately depart. SAD!!!
Doves are mainly ground feeders which makes them extremely vulnerable to being swooped up by predators. They’re almost 100% granivores, feasting on grains and seeds from wild grasses, weeds, and herbs. I stopped filling the bird feeders because of RATS and squirrels so these guys are on their own, but that doesn’t seem to bother them.
Like all birds, Mourning Doves are unable to sweat, so to stay cool during hot weather … they pant just like a dog. Panting requires the doves to drink a great deal of water due the excessive loss of moisture to evaporation. Doves are one of the few species of birds that drink by sucking up their water instead of taking a bill full of water and letting it trickle down their throat. It can suck up its total daily requirement in less than twenty seconds.
Symbolically, it’s believed that when a dove visits you, they bring a message from a loved one who has passed away or a sign of peace and comfort during times of grief. Two doves together symbolize unity, partnership, and love.
I left the ladder nearby so I can check on mama’s progress. Soon, I hope to hear the chirping of hungry little dove babies.
Ever so gently
Just as we
Shall be
Let them all be
Let the ladybirds on a rose bush be
Let the worms deep down in the earth be
Let all the little creatures come to me
Let all the elementals come to see
Ever so knowingly
Just as we
Shall be
Let them all be
A little poem by Athey Thompson
Art by Ida Rentoul Outhwaite and Elaine Bayley
Along with today’s rare alignment of Mars conjunct Uranus in Taurus, one of the most impactful astrological events of the year, July’s full moon is next Sunday and I can already feel the energy, how about you?
My dreams are crazy intense. I dreamt of whales swirling all around, smiling at me. There were other, darker, sadder dreams that woke me up and gloomily lingered for the rest of the day, but the whales only brought a delightful yearning to speak to them and join in their song.
This is the juvenile California Gray Whale that became lost and almost dangerously stranded in our lagoon.
Lucky me got several super close up photos and videos. At one point, his eyes locked onto mine and I tried to mentally direct him back to the open ocean so he could join his mom. Eventually he did, but I’m sure I had nothing to do with it.
It was an otherworldly experience, as are all my whale and dolphin sightings. There is no greater joy than the exquisite joy that brings tears from our heart and soul.
Did you know that a family of bunnies is called a “fluffle”?
My garden is home to a fluffle of wild rabbits. Sometimes they frustrate me because they eat every single blade of grass, even pulling out the roots, and it’s literally impossible to reseed the bare spots they create.
This is where the ambivalence comes from; a love/hate kind of feeling. On one hand, they’re cute, especially the babies, but rabbits can be quite destructive, and there’s not much that deters them.
One of my neighbors who complained about a similar problem suggested shaving Ivory or Irish Spring soap around the area to discourage the buns and I might try that to see if it really works or if it’s an urban myth.
However, this little guy greets me every morning when I open the patio doors. He’s always perched on the deck bench and devours grape leaves.
What’s even freakier is that he sits at the screen door and watches me, even at night. I have to remember to securely latch the screen because I think he’s trying to come in the house.
Because of all the rain early in the year, the vines grew crazy big. I covered the grape clusters with little white mesh bags to save them from the buns and other critters, but I’m happy to share a few leaves, especially since they’re pesticide-free.
More magic!
I can’t post video any other way on WordPress so I hope you’ll be able to view this spectacular bobcat that came to my garden DURING THE DAY with a RAT in his mouth!
Here’s how the story unfolds: Yesterday morning around 6:30 a.m., I saw something on the lawn. I went out to look and it was a mangled rat. Hmmm, I said to myself, that’s gross, but I bet a hawk or owl dropped it. A little later, I walked up the stairs and took the SD card out of my wildlife camera that’s situated on the lower half of the hill and brought it inside to check, like I do on a weekly basis.
I was absolutely blown away by this video!
Bobcats (and coyotes) visit most nights, but this is the very first time I’ve captured video of a daytime stroll through here — with the added bonus of a meal.
It might look as if he walks away, but keep watching for his return along with an early dinner. As he makes his way down the steps, I realize the bobcat is the reason for the rodent remains I found on the lawn. This bobkitty is so jawdroppingly beautiful, I’ve watched the video at least a dozen times.
Bobcats are incredibly elusive animals and a bobcat sighting is a rare occurrence. Although bobcats are primarily nocturnal, they may be seen during the day while hunting/foraging for food, especially between April and July when they are most likely to have dependent young.
The only part of this momentous event that makes me a little sad is that I was HERE at that exact time and didn’t have a clue that I should have looked out the window that faces the garden as it would have been the greatest day in my life, right up there with seeing wolves in the Lamar Valley at Yellowstone, (although the temptation to want to run outside and say “here kitty, kitty” and pet him is strong.)
I am beyond grateful that these creatures feel that my garden (and me) are a safe haven to explore.
What might it mean? Seeing a bobcat carries a powerful spiritual message. It could be a sign that we need to tap into our inner strength and independence. The bobcat embodies resilience, encouraging us to stand our ground in the face of challenges.
Additionally, the presence of a bobcat might be a call to explore the mysteries of our life. It’s an invitation to delve deeper into our personal spirituality and uncover truths that may be hidden or suppressed. A bobcat can indeed be seen as a good luck spiritual symbol. https://lifeadventurously.com/spiritual-meaning-of-bob-cat/
This is a good time to remind us all about the horrors of using poison to control rodents:
Rat poisons don’t just kill rats; they kill wildlife too. Wildlife species are exposed to anticoagulant rat poisons when the poisons are used in urban and agricultural areas to target species such as rodents. But those who consume the poisons do not die immediately of the internal bleeding they are intended to cause. It can take more than a week for a poisoned rodent to die. In the meantime, the poisoned animal may be vulnerable to predators, and if a predator such as a bobcat preys on the poisoned rodent, the bobcat becomes poisoned too. Thus, poisons enter local food webs and become especially harmful to animals at the top of the food chain. Through a process called bioaccumulation, animals at the top of the food chain absorb toxins from eating lots of different prey animals, but their organs cannot filter out the toxins, causing the poisons to accumulate in their systems. As a result, some of the most iconic species in California – bobcats, coyotes, foxes, mountain lions, owls – are the most vulnerable to this indirect poisoning. https://panthera.org/blog-post/surprising-effects-rat-poison-bobcats
This isn’t the greatest photo; the sun kind of distorted the sharp lines and colors, but I was lucky enough to capture my lizard friend sunning himself on an orange tennis ball
This other guy visits every day; I can always tell who it is by his sort of mutilated tail. He seems to know when I’m in the garden and runs over to greet me.
Hello, handsome! They might be referred to as cold-blooded, but still have their own distinctive personalities.
Lizards like to snack on mealworms, but I never seem to remember to buy them at the pet store. I know they have enough to eat because they’re doing a great job cleaning the garden of unwanted grasshoppers, crickets, and beetles.
Enchanted Seashells | Princess Rosebud 