A Wee Thought After a Difficult Week – #Poetry (Sort of)

/ Marcia Meara

Ode to a Painted Bunting

A sign.
My heart called out for a sign.
Something to hang onto.
Something to give me hope.
Something to remind me the world can be beautiful,
And people can be kind, generous, and loving.

Just a sign.
Please.
Nothing momentous.
A simple reminder that Life can be good.
That’s all I asked.
All I needed.

And then …
A sudden glimpse of red,
An impossible flash of chartreuse,
A dollop of bluish purple …
There!

Just there, outside my window.
I held my breath, staring in wonder.
How could such a creature even be real?
So tiny and quick, and yet …
So brilliantly magical!
Reminding me of all the beauty in the world.

A sign.
That’s what it was.
And I smiled, at peace again,
And ready to face the day.

Painted buntings have been at my backyard birdfeeder for over 2 weeks now, passing through on their northward migration. I have been in awe every day, as they never stay here this long. (Guess they got the weather report and decided to postpone heading farther north). Last week was a tough one, and I was feeling pretty discouraged, but when I got up today and saw there were still two males and two of the solid green females at my feeder, I realized what a gift I’d been given. A sign, indeed! Better days are ahead! For ALL of us! 💖💖💖

 

64 thoughts on “A Wee Thought After a Difficult Week – #Poetry (Sort of)”

    • Thanks, Jeanne. Buntings are stunning, unreal-looking creatures, and I’ve enjoyed them at my feeder these past couple of weeks. They DID remind me this morning that better days lie ahead!

      Thanks for stopping by! 😀 ❤

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    • Thanks, Harmony. It was just hard dragging myself through it, and having to cancel more presentations, and not being able to get out of the house. It starts to weigh on you after awhile, as I’m sure you know all too well. But oh, the pure joy of seeing these buntings outside every day lately! I do think they are a sign, staying way, way longer than they usually do to let me know it’s time to stop all the fretting and moaning and groaning, and get on with things. Lesson learned!

      Thanks for stopping by, my friend! 😀 ❤

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  3. Beautiful! You have your sign and you have the power of your words to show you that all is well. If I didn’t trust you implicitly, I’d say you’d painted that impossibly vivid bird! ♥♥

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    • Trust me, Trish. Photos don’t do them justice. When the sun hits that rainbow of colors, it’s absolutely unbelievable! And they are TINY, too. Much smaller than wrens or titmice, which aren’t very big. They’re larger than hummingbirds, but not by much. All that beauty packed into that wee bundle of feathers! Amazing!

      And thanks for the encouraging words. Yes, I have my sign, and I’m busy getting my head back on straight again. 😁 After all, every day we wake up with another chance to do it all better, so I’m jumping on it. (Or leaning against it, since my energy level is still pretty low. But I’m getting there, and that’s the thing I have to remember. Good to see you hear this morning! 😀 ❤

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    • A perfect sign, indeed! I should have realized it sooner, but at least I figured it out before they left to complete their journey northward. I might be slow, but I get there eventually! 😁 Thanks for letting me know you enjoyed the little poem, too. 😀 ❤

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  6. Wow, what gorgeous birds! I’ve never seen one but I fully understand how one (or many) would be an uplifting sight.
    I’m sorry you had such a rough week, but I’m praying this one is better for you. Sending you positive energy and BIG HUGS!!! ❤

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    • It truly IS an amazing little bundle of color, isn’t it? And finally I realized that I’d been getting an uplifting message daily for TWO weeks. Time to quit moaning around and think happy thoughts! Not only are the buntings STILL here, but the grackles have arrived, too. Also migrants, they won’t be here long, but they are such fun to watch while they are. Shiny purple black, bright yellow eyes, and tons of attitude! I love them.

      Thanks so much for the positive words and prayers, Mae. I’ll take ’em and add them to my little feathered beauties as a sign life IS still good, and things WILL continue to improve! Big Hugs Back Atcha! 🤗💖🤗

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    • Exactly what I thought, Gwen. It just took me a while to come out of my brain fog and recognize it for what it was. They are truly amazing and beyond merely beautiful. For such tiny birds, they pack an astounding wallop! And thank you for reminding me that angels do abound around us, even when we ungratefully ignore them. My eyes feel opened today! And I know I’m blessed to have friends like you! 🤗💖🤗

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  8. OMG – you actually saw that bird in real life?? I’ve only seen those in pictures (well, and the internet). Yes for all good and positive things. It’s certainly past time, don’t you think?

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    • I agree that we are DUE for good and positive things, Sue, even if we have to put some effort into looking for them right now. There are still some out there, and hopefully, more will follow.

      And I see this little bird every spring when they begin their journey north, but normally they are only here for a day–or in a good year, two–before they continue on their journey toward their summer/nesting grounds. This year, they’ve been at my feeder daily for well over two weeks, since it’s WAY too cold for them to head farther north. It’s a good thing they stuck around, though. It took me that long to realize I’d gotten the sign I’d been longing for. I enjoyed them daily, but now I feel really blessed that they’ve hung out in my backyard so long. I’ll be sad to see them go, but happy that they’ll soon be nesting and making more to come see me next year. 😊😊😊

      Thanks for stopping by, Sue, and I hope you get to see some of these guys for yourself one day. You won’t believe your eyes! 😀 ❤

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    • Thanks, Jan! I’m glad you enjoyed the poem and the bunting. The perfect sign is RIGHT! And better days are waiting ahead, I just know it. (Even if I have to remind myself of it now and then.) There are lessons to be learned all around us, and the painted bunting sure taught me one this morning.

      Thanks for stopping by! 😀 ❤

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    • Cheering, indeed. Breathtakingly so! I’ve truly enjoyed having them keep me company over the last 2-1/2 weeks or so, especially since I haven’t been able to go anywhere for almost four weeks now. (Urk.) But if I’d been running around the countryside, I would likely have missed them, so there’s a silver lining to everything, right? 😊

      Thanks for stopping by today, Miriam! 😀 ❤

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    • Yep. I’m convinced of that, Denise! And I’m glad you enjoyed seeing this gorgeous bird. I’m always thrilled to catch sight of them each spring, and this year has been a wonderfully longer-than-usual visit, so a great sign of things to come!

      Thanks for stopping by today! 😀 ❤

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  14. The first time I saw painted buntings, I thought they were tiny parrots. Their beautiful colors take my breath away. And the grackles in sunlight! Their feathers become dark rainbows, shimmering with a mysterious beauty. Signs of coming blessings, indeed! Thank you for sharing your beautiful poem, Marcia!

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    • Thank you so much, Patty! I’ve been an ardent nature lover and birder for many, many years, so I’m always happy when I can share a bit of that here, and in my books, as well. And I often say painted buntings look like little bitty parrots, too. They are truly amazing. And grackles are a treat, aren’t they? I love the way they strut around, announcing themselves to the world. I think Lowell’s poem captured their essence perfectly, along with the rest of the message in that beautiful work.

      I’m glad you enjoyed my little poem, too. Yep … it took me a while, but I finally realized these little birds hanging out at my feeder for this long was definitely a sign of good things to come.

      Thanks so much for stopping by today! 😀 ❤

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    • I love cardinals, too, Kass, but we have them all year long here. They nest at least 3 times between spring and fall, and we often see the fledglings hopping about, learning to fly. Alas, painted buntings aren’t here very long, just stopping by on migration … but then, that’s what makes them such a miracle, isn’t it? 😊 Better times ahead, for sure! And thanks so much for stopping by today. 😀 ❤

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  17. My sign is my robin, sometimes I can’t see him, but I can hear him singing; amazing that he has such a strong sweet voice. They are solitary territorial birds, the females look the same, but I have rarely seen a pair together. They must get together sometime as there has always been a robin in this garden and at my previous houses. They are not afraid to come close when you are gardening.

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    • We have some resident robins year-round down here, but they aren’t very conspicuous. During migration, though, it’s a whole different story. Great flocks of them stop over in both spring and fall. I enjoy them, too.

      Thanks for stopping by today, Janet! 😀 ❤

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    • I did just that, Joan. Decided that while I’d been enjoying their daily visits, I hadn’t stopped to consider what a wonderfully beautiful sign it was. As I mentioned here and there, we only have them passing through during migration, and I’ve never had them at my feeder for more than a day or two at the most, before they continued on their journey north. This has been a rare treat!

      And I’m glad you enjoyed the poem, too. Thanks so much for stopping by and letting me know! 😀 ❤

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  19. Just remembered something. My Mom broke her ankle one summer and was in a cast for several weeks. (Those were the days of plaster casts.) She was set for a miserable summer. One day, a mockingbird with one leg flew nearby and pearched. Mom began talking to it and the bird would return. They sort of helped one another through the summer. ❤

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    • Oh, wow! Now THAT is a wonderful story! I love it! I have mockers at my feeder all year round, but none of them has made friends with me, either one-legged or two. They do show up the minute I put the feed on the tray, though, so I know they’re watching. And I use a mix that includes dried fruit and nuts. Lots more varieties of birds show up for that.

      I think you should consider including your mother’s story in one of your books. It’s terrific! Thanks for sharing! 😊

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    • They really are astounding, Pete. Hope you get to see one. The indigo buntings are beautiful, too, and I see them the same way, during migration. Only I’ve never had them hang around longer than a day or so, either.

      I think that lark bunting is very, very handsome. While not brightly colored, he’s still beautiful. I’ve never seen one, and would love to. Thanks for sharing that! 😀

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  21. I believe in signs. When I need a pick me up, a Carolina wren almost always drops by my birdfeeders, bless his heart. We have blue buntings in Indiana, but nothing like yours. But they’re so small and so fast, I consider myself lucky when I see one. Good luck, Marcia. I hope your bunting brings you more and more joy.

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    • We have Carolina wrens here, too, and they are one of my favorite garden birds, Judi. They nest in our yard, and visit my feeder, too, though they aren’t primarily seed eaters. But the mix I use has some dried fruit and nuts, and they’ll grab those. Plus, if it gets wet, some bugs get attracted to it, and they love picking out those, for sure. The blue bunting is probably the indigo, and I think they are stunning, too. It’s such a clear, pure blue, and they’re equally fun to watch. They pass through my yard during migration as well, but only one or two, and for just a day or so. The painted buntings have been a real treat this year, and I’m always happy to see little signs/promises for good things to come.

      Thanks for stopping by today! 😀 ❤

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  22. Aww, lovely poem Marcia. i love it when I see robins they always cheer me up. I wrote about one in my collection of poetry, short stories and photography Mr. Sagittarius.Yes wee birds are lovely not so keen on the big nasty seagulls and the like though!

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    • While I don’t think I’d need to have a gull at my feeder, I do love them, anyway. They are so beautiful in the air, and fun to watch at the beach. But I pretty much love all critters (er … except for those spiders mentioned in my bio. I may not kill them any more, but I still don’t like them much.) Robins are always a welcome sight. While we have some that stay here year-round, during spring and fall migration, we have huge flocks passing through, and it’s always fun to see them. No wonder you wrote a poem about one! 😊

      Thanks for stopping by today! 😀 ❤

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    • Thanks so much, Yvette. I really was struck by the sense that they were a sign of good things to come, so I sat right down and typed that up on the blog. I didn’t even stop to edit or adjust. Just let my feelings flow, and went with it. And they are truly stunning, indeed. The male was in one of my birdbaths when I got up this morning, so at least one or two are still here with me. (Waiting for those wicked winter storms to ease up before moving on, I think.)

      Thanks for stopping by today! 😀 ❤

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    • We don’t have them here, either, most of the time. Just passing through during migration, and I’m always ecstatic when I see them. These have been here well over two weeks this year, as opposed to their normal 1 to 2 day stopover, so I’m guessing they sense it’s been too cold to continue their journey. As the winter storms ease up a bit, they’ll be on their way back to their summer nesting grounds. But in the meantime, aren’t they just amazing? *happy sigh*

      Thanks for stopping by today! 😀

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