Meet the Real Jack Sparrow

 My five year old grandson came running in, breathlessly, from the backyard on Saturday. A tiny bird, with very few feathers and eyes still closed, had fallen out of its nest in the poplar tree beside the patio. Help was needed urgently to save his life as cats were roaming the area.

At first the children thought he might be a swift, in which case they planned to name him Taylor Swift. But an internet search soon revealed that he was a sparrow, so he became Jack Sparrow, instead.

A previously found nest was placed inside a cell phone box and the little fellow was placed carefully inside. What was to be done about Jack Sparrow?

We tried giving him a drop of water from an eye dropper. It worked. As soon as the eye dropper touched his beak, it flew open wider than his whole head. More internet research advised not to do this, as baby birds don't drink water directly while in the nest. Too bad. One site suggested that we should feed some mushy cat kibble and the moisture would be absorbed through the food.

Someone mentioned that our regional Birds of Prey Center in Coaldale, Alberta took rescue birds and so it was decided that a trip to the Birds of Prey Center was needed to save his life. Suddenly, our day had purpose and direction.

Thanks to Jack Sparrow our family enjoyed a great afternoon at the Birds of Prey Center and Jack Sparrow was placed into their care. 

Who would have guessed that a tiny bird falling from its nest would initiate an outing for the whole family? 

Our Apple Story

 

The long-awaited apple picking day finally came. Everyone came out to the tree to help out. The kids loved climbing the ladder to get the juiciest ones from the top of the tree.

After picking, we sorted the apples into the biggest and best vs. all the rest.

We saved a few of the big ones for fresh eating, but most went into making apple pie filling.

Of course we had to make a couple of fresh apple pies right away. 

The rest we canned for future pies.

The smaller apples were cut and put into the top of the new juicer.

After boiling for an hour on the stove ...

We opened the clamp and beautiful, hot, steamy apple juice poured out.

We sampled it ... delicious!

Then we canned it right away while it was still hot.

The top of the juicer was filled with leftover apple pulp.

We ran the pulp through a food mill and got some pretty thick apple sauce.

 It was so thick we could hardly get the air bubbles out when we filled the jars. The leftover applesauce that didn't fill another jar completely became a great topping for breakfast oatmeal. 

We'll be enjoying all this apple goodness for months to come. Last Saturday was a very satisfying apple day at Windy Rafters!

Life in the Small Pond

 

These young ducks were hatched and raised by my daughter here at Windy Rafters. They've since become my grandchildren's pets. It's so relaxing to sit for a while in the evening and watch the ducks in their little pond.

They love this tiny waterway. It's all they've ever known. They swim back and forth, grooming themselves and searching for food over and over again. I have a new appreciation for the saying, "Water off a duck's back." It really does roll right off! Every once in a while, one of them will flap their wings as if to fly away, but it never happens. It's just a fleeting thought.

Since the pandemic, we've all been living life in the small pond. The difference between us and the ducks is that we've known a much larger world in the past. How do we go from putting 60,000 km a year on our cars and taking international holidays, to staying at home, except for an occasional foray to the grocery store or the neighborhood park?

I've been trying to take a lesson from the ducks. I'm taking great pleasure in the little things close around me. My garden and yard have been a source of great pleasure this year. Our vegetable garden has been fantastic. Early rains and more attention than usual has yielded some wonderful results which we now enjoy at the dinner table every evening.

I have multiple projects in the house as well. I've just finished the illustrations for my second book and writing book three is right around the corner. I've been sewing rag quilts for all my grandchildren for their birthdays. I'm engrossed in cooking and canning projects and try to spend a little bit of each day at the piano. I already have a whole list of projects for the fall and winter. I'm feeling very blessed to be on this big old farm we call Windy Rafters, where I can go for long walks and never leave the property. Most of the time, life in the small pond is not too bad. 

Natural Rhythms

    

There's a natural rhythm to life in the country that I find reassuring. I just finished the last picking of peas in the garden this morning and the green beans are almost finished as well. Some of my grandchildren helped me sample the apples on the apple tree yesterday, but they were a little too green. The kids' pet ducks got the pleasure of eating the rest of the ones we tasted. It will be another week before they are ready to be picked and then we'll be making applesauce.  Haying is pretty much over and the grain in the fields is starting to turn color. Harvest usually starts around my daughter's birthday in August, but it will be a little later this year because of the cool spring. 

    That's not to say that country living is boring or even predictable. I was walking across the yard last week and almost stepped on a little robin's nest that had fallen to the ground with one empty blue egg shell in it. My five-year-old grandson and I both hoped it happened because the birds didn't need it anymore.

     In many ways we live at the mercy of the elements. Take last weekend for example. On Saturday evening, my oldest grandson burst into the house. He was outside with his uncle and grandpa, when they suddenly heard the overhead electrical lines start to hum and buzz. This was followed by a crack of lightening that hit right behind our Quonset. It took out the power and when it came back on it flickered and pulsed for several seconds before resuming full capacity. The rest of the evening and into the night we had an electric light show like no other and lost power three more times. 

    No matter what else is happening, the natural world right outside my door brings both consistency and excitement every day.