Lately, I’ve found the regular habitues of the bird feeder have become more relaxed about my presence. One blue jay could even be called “friendly.” Well, he or she now has a couple of fledglings who have been following him to the bird feeder. They alternately scream for food and get it themselves. It’s fun to watch them watch their parents and learn. One thing they seem to have learned is that the people who emerge from our backdoor are not particularly scary.

I sunk into a pretty bad, clinical, depression last year. I found the wild animals in the back yard gave me a level of solace I wasn’t getting from people. Especially after they lost their fear of me. Now, it’s like seeing all of your friends stop by to show off their new babies. Isn’t Blue’s baby adorable?