When the Snowflakes Fall...

It is snowing in Alabama! Nothing like the blizzard folks are experiencing in other parts of the country. But it is highly unusual to get a dousing of white around here. Usually, if snow falls it is in the middle of the night, the beauty lasts about an hour, then the sun comes out leaving muddy slush in its wake.

Not today. It is REALLY snowing in Alabama!

From my perch in the loft, it feels like I am inside of a snow globe. Whoever shook this one did a great job!! The flakes are dusting the trees and the deck is blanketed in white. Most stunning of all is the menagerie of birds that have invaded the feeders and the trees. I stopped counting the number of finches, cardinals, and LBB's (little brown birds) when I reached thirty. Every opening at the two feeders is occupied, the deck is covered in tiny birds pecking through the snow, and finches decorate the trees like Christmas ornaments.

The birds are acting very strange on this snowy day. They are partying big-time! Even though I filled the feeders this morning, by lunchtime they were empty. Daisy and I walked onto the snowy deck. An airlift of raucous wings flapped toward safety.

As I moved toward the bird seed-filled trash can a tiny goldfinch flew in my face and then landed on a wire inches away. I stooped down and soothingly spoke to him, sure he must be hurt if he wasn't taking flight. He returned my gaze, charmingly turning his tiny head. We lingered in this posture of mutual admiration for quite some time. Snow drenched my hair and I was getting cold, but I didn't want to scare my new friend by lifting the lid to get the seed. Finally, I explained what I was about to do, as if he would understand, and then gently lifted the lid. He stood and watched me fill the feeders, fascinated by the process. When I stood up he finally flew away. I chuckled.

As I was hoisting the feeders back to their spot, my little friend and a few other finches actually danced around my head. Clearly they were drunk with snow! Just as I was about to go inside, there was movement in the trees. About a 100 yards away was a HUGE bird looking out over the snowy lake. I thought it was a hawk, because its back was to me, I wasn't sure.

Thirty minutes, forty five minutes, an hour later that giant bird was still contemplating life from his perch. Sometime later I noticed he was no longer there and thought, I wish I would've seen him fly. Minutes later an enormous owl glided in front of the window--in the middle of the day!

When snowflakes fall in Alabama!