July 2026
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The View Changes Before the World Does
This morning I watched Stella swoop down from one of the trees, wings stretched wide as she dropped toward the puddle. Within seconds she had caught a fish and lifted back into the air as though it had all been effortless. It still amazes me. Yesterday both Stella and Stanley were especially active. They flew… Continue reading
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The Days That Ask Us Simply to Endure
Yesterday our little puddle sat beneath a heat index of nearly 124 degrees. It wasn’t a day for thriving. It wasn’t a day for showing off. It was a day for making it through. The birds found shade. The geese stood quietly in the water. Pinecone stretched out wherever the ground was coolest. Even the… Continue reading
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The Empty Feeder
This morning the bird feeders are empty. If I’m honest, they’ll probably stay that way until Friday. Over the past month, our little feathered neighbors have become accustomed to finding breakfast here. Three feeders can be emptied in a single day, not always because the birds eat every seed, but because they search, sort, and… Continue reading
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One Month Behind the Puddle
On June 30, I shared the first Puddle Story on Facebook. At the time, I thought I was simply introducing a little neighborhood puddle behind our home. I didn’t realize it would begin introducing me to myself. Over the past month we’ve met a lone goose, Pinecone, Shelly, Stella and Stanley, Purple Martins, baby mallards,… Continue reading
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Finding Higher Ground
There comes a point in every season when the little ones stop hiding quite so much. They haven’t left home, and they aren’t fully independent, but they begin to trust the world enough to step into the open. This morning, the highest point in the puddle wasn’t much, a weathered log barely rising above the… Continue reading
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The Lunch Line
Today’s visitors made me giggle. Gone are the days when I could easily point to each goose family and know exactly who belonged to whom. The goslings have grown so much that they now blend together into one long line, waddling through the puddle as if they had all agreed to meet for a late… Continue reading
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The Story the Rain Gauge Told
This morning, when we stepped onto the patio, everything suggested that it had rained overnight. The morning dew still covered the grass well after 9:00 a.m. Harper’s chair held a small puddle of water, something she didn’t seem to mind as she climbed right into her favorite place. The air was heavy with humidity, and… Continue reading
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After the Heat
Yesterday the puddle was alive. The heat had finally broken, the breeze had returned, and it seemed as though every neighbor, feathered, furred, and shelled, had been waiting for permission to come back outside. The herons visited again and again, six times throughout the day. Each time I was so excited to see them that… Continue reading
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When the Nursery Becomes a Runway
The little goose families have begun to wander farther from our yard. Instead of spending most of their day around the puddle, they now make regular trips to the empty lot next door. The parents confidently lead their growing youngsters across the street, paying little attention to impatient drivers who announce their presence with a… Continue reading
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Planning for the Human Experience
Most people think advance directives begin with healthcare. I believe they begin with humanity. The word advance simply means before. The word directive simply means guidance or instruction. Long before any medical decisions need to be made, each of us is already writing directives through the way we live. We discover what comforts us, who… Continue reading
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