As a follow-up to my last post, well, the mommy and daddy birdies did indeed come back to the strawberry plant to check on their sprouting babes. Then they proceeded to chirp away non-stop for hours on end, defending their turf and young-uns with every ounce of their tiny little bird bodies. I swear they just knew someone had been poking around in there just like in “Goldilocks and the Three Bears.”
Out of respect for Mother Nature in action, I tried to stay away from the porch, although I do admit to spying on them frequently from inside the house. Finally when the strawberry plant looked like it was going to pass out from the overwhelming heat this weekend, I headed out there and proceeded to water it, aiming only for the side without the nest.
Lo and behold I heard an indignant squeak and a tiny bird came shooting out onto the deck floor followed by an indignant mommy and daddy chirping it up. Not sure where the other baby birds were, but alas, now all the chicks have flown the coop – quite literally. It’s an empty nest.
Ah, the empty nest syndrome. Now I understand it. It’s just too eerie, too unnaturally quiet. Now that I can actually use the porch all I want, it’s not so appealing. I’m already dreading Sam going to college, but at least I have plenty of time to psychologically prepare.
LibbY