Jaye Marie and Anita Dawes

I had just moved from the PC to my writing chair to try and get my head around a book review I was working on.

Things were going well when I happened to look up from my work to look out of the window in front of me.

Something had made me put down my pen and I looked for the reason.

I scanned the garden and all the trees that I could see without standing up, they were thrashing about in violent gusts of wind. Further down the garden, almost too far for me to focus on, the row of bird feeders were doing a roaring trade with the local birdlife.

I love to watch the birds in our garden, mainly small ones like sparrows, bluetits and the odd robin. It’s like a mad rush hour as they take it in turns to land on the feeders, pecking furiously at the fat balls. They seem to prefer these to the seed I also supply.

I became aware of other activity a lot closer to my window and switched my attention to the shelf with the row of bonsai trees. A male blackbird with shiny black plumage and vivid yellow beak was perched on one of the pots and was viciously pecking at the carefully cultivated moss that snuggles around the base of each tree.

We were just a few feet from each other, and I knew he was watching me, but he carried on with his mission. By the time he had visited all the trees on the shelf, it looked like a battleground with lumps of moss scattered everywhere.

Later, I was asked why I hadn’t tapped on the window to stop the destruction, but what the bird was doing was perfectly natural, and if he removed any insects that might have harmed my trees, I would be in his debt. Moss is so easily replaced.

Sharing those moments with Mr Blackbird was magical and I will remember them forever…

©Jaye Marie 2020