The Backyard in Winter

I work at home now, in what was once my living room. But in all the years I worked a day job and imagined working at home, I had an ideal day in each season that came to mind as I thought of “summer” or “winter”.

Today was that winter day. I love snow, but we don’t get a whole lot of it here in Pittsburgh. But a day of frozen earth and hard snow flurries opening out to bright sun reflecting off bare branches–that is winter.

And my back yard filled with bird activity, sparrows, mourning doves, showy cardinals, shrieking blue jays, scolding wrens, cheery chickadees, brilliant woodpeckers, and more–that is winter, too.

I have various bird feeders in view from each window. I wait for this day, and as the birds flock and flutter I am transfixed. I also count the birds at my feeders for Cornell University’s Feederwatch program, and have grown to know their populations and appreciate their habitats all the more through this.

Great entertainment, that wildlife!