The New Nest

Last night I sat in my recliner and watched as the full Beaver Moon came up and rose into the night sky. It was a supermoon! Yes, it was! So pretty. So clear. So majestic. I hope you had the chance to see it. 

I saw it because the leaves are now gone on the box elder tree outside our window. They have fallen in the past few days, scattered now across our back yard. The silver maples are dropping their leaves as well. Soon the ground will be covered and the branches will be bare.

I’ve watched as we’ve had flocks of brown-headed cowbirds visit our feeder. They are flocking together and flying south. We still have birds at the feeders and I’m thankful for that. It’s a joy to watch them feed and try to fend one another off. Chickadees and Titmice and House Finches and Cardinals and Nuthatches come close so that they can grab some sunflower seeds. Others are transitory visitors who will soon be gone for a season. 

All of this happens through the two big windows that face east from our cottage. One of the attractions to this place was that it already had trees and some open space in the backyard. We knew we’d be sharing it with the birds. 

We moved in March (mostly) and April (finally!). This will be our first fall in the new house. We’re still settling which is not really a surprise. We’re still figuring out how the heat is going to be and what to set the thermostat and how to program it. This morning the power went out a couple of times in quick succession. Made me think about a generator since the cottage is all electric including the heat and the hot water. There are still things that need to find their ‘homes’ in our new home. Takes time—nesting doesn’t happen in an instant.

I was thinking this morning that what’s going on is ‘nesting’—that process of making a home and making it comfortable and familiar. Just like those birds outside, we are getting ourselves ready for the change of seasons. The missing leaves and full moon make me think of the days and weeks and weather ahead. We will be here sheltering amidst the storms and snow and sun and cold that’s coming. The view out the window will change, but to some extent we want the inside to feel the same. 

I’ve started to notice some different things. Like the position where the sun rises. There for a few weeks it was rising and shining straight in the windows so that for a couple of hours every morning I pretty much needed a hat to shade my eyes if I was giong to read or do anything on my screen. It was bright and beautiful through the changing leaves. Now it’s moving farther to the south and it won’t be a problem for a while. Our Kenya cat likes the window as well—nice spot for a sunny morning nap. 

I’ve noticed that the leaves being off the trees makes for better star-gazing. Indeed, the patio out back is an excellent spot to sit and watch the moon or look at the constellations or watch for the International Space Station (ISS) to pass over. It’s important to me to have a good view of the sky. Strikes me that a good nest allows one to watch the world around and observe what’s going on. 

From the window in the dining room we’ve been able to watch a family of squirrels grow up. Small and swift, they scurry around the tree learning about life. I noticed that a family of grackles used the same hole in the summer time—as if the squirrels had sub-leased it until they got ready for another litter in the fall. It’s sort of a multi-use hole I guess. 

We’ve had some cats hanging around a good bit as well. In the spring time we had some baby bunnies, although I haven’t seen any in a while.

I can already tell that my little window on the world is going to be a good place to be. Sufficiently comfortable inside and stimulating outside. Some animals have to build a new ‘house’ year by year. We will instead keep making this ‘nest’ more our own for years to come.