by Tonya M. Williams

How did you observe Indigenous People’s Day? The second Monday in October usually means time-off from work and school to rest and regroup. Maybe you slept late, caught up on house work or yard work, then had folks over for a cookout. Or, did you drive down to Mobile for the Port City Battle of the Bands then extend the trip ’cause Monday was IP Day? That’s all good. Anything to restore the soul. As for me, I spent the day in the company of some wonderful folks on a birding tour in Northeast Montgomery.

I’ve lived in this city for quite a while and can count on one hand the number of times I’ve visited Lagoon Park. Unless you play golf (which I did briefly years ago) or tennis, there wasn’t much else goin’ on out there. Once or twice back when I homeschooled my daughter we met other homeschoolers at Pete Peterson Lodge for science co-ops. That was about it. Since the hiking trails opened this year however, it’s gotten a second glance – first with my family in September, and now this.

At risk of sounding like a broken record, let me say this was one of the best trips. Their enthusiasm about birding (one member said she’d never done anything like it before), rethinking local outdoor spaces and just resting in nature’s restorative powers was central to the day’s success. Add to that the eagerness of three precious little girls whose willingness to re-frame their perceptions about wildlife and ecosystems then you can understand those sentiments. Watching as they scribbled notes in their journals or presented bird sketches for me to inspect was everything!

MYSTERY BIRD

If you’ve read any of the previous blogs you know that nearly every birding trip reveals something new. This time, thanks to Tasha Scott’s keen eye, we all turned our attention to an animated bunch of birds a few yards off the trail. Turns out they were Yellow Warblers, migrators who winter in Central America and Northern South America. Their normally brilliant yellow plumage was a bit muted for autumn but notable enough to keep us engrossed for several minutes.

The yellow warbler sighting underscores a memory exercise  introduced at the beginning of most tours. Before hitting the trail, members are asked to recall a bird that, for whatever reason, stands out in their mind. On this hike a few said hummingbirds, one recalled a pelican while the “bird that pecks wood” was most memorable to our youngest participant. What’s beautiful about this activity is that practically everyone knows where they saw it and maybe even when – no matter how long ago. That’s part of what I like about birding ’cause whether we realize it or not, avian encounters are embedded in the background of our daily lives. Without trying, we absorb fragments from the natural world, and as often as not, attach pleasant feelings to those observations. They’re just below the surface and sometimes, all it takes is a few minutes away from the daily grind to reveal it.

We took a few selfies at the mid-way mark then made our way back along the dusty trail with the children running ahead laughing and giggling. A comfortable silence settled over the rest of us. At that moment, I imagined contentment coding itself on the software of their hearts. If asked in say, 10 or 15 years, what bird do you recall, I’m optimistic the yellow warbler evokes fond memories of a restful autumn morning in the company of new friends.

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About the author: See that lady out there with the binoculars? That’s probably Tonya. Follow her blog at www.thesassypuffin.wordpress.com where she shares her latest adventures and ruminations. Tonya’s a motivational speaker, birding guide, creativist, and nature enthusiast pointing folks towards health and healing right where they live.

 Sources:

Yellow Warbler photo attribution: Photosbyjoe, August, 2011 – https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Yellow_Warbler/id

All rights reserved, 2016.