The Return
As I sat down to start drafting this note to you I heard the trill of the Red-winged Blackbird, drifting through structure of the ChicFinn Cottage’s breakfast nook closed windows.
They returned to our part of Minnesota this week!
Our ears will delight in their trills and high pitched whistles for the next few months, and my eye will relish in the flash of their near-florescent yellow and red-orange stripes as they flit from my favorite oak tree to the bird feeders Vaimo lovingly tends.
For those who don’t have the experience of seasonal change in their geographic location, let me try to explain the feelings we have in Minnesota when spring springs.
Spring elation is when the sun begins to finally shine a bit more. The days are longer and one can feel it. We’re shedding winter boots for mud boots, and coats for jackets. We’re switching from the winter hats to a baseball cap for our outside time. We’e celebrating making it through winter and witnessing the trees bud, and the grasses green.
Spring elation is always worth a mention because it fills me with hope, optimism, and the reminder of the cycles of change.
It’s also like the power of a sunrise reminding us another day is possible, but magnified to the point of thrilling!
Birds inspire me.
Do they inspire you?
I am a skittish flyer but I love watching birds’ effortless flight. Purple Martins love to put on shows, and Vaimo and I will find ourselves spending an evening watching them hunt bugs and feed their babes.
I love thinking about the reptilian roots of birds, and how they are our living examples of the evolution of dinosaurs.
Chickens make their way into my paintings often and the rooster as symbol is something I love exploring in paint. I absolutely love that the chickens that make it into my paintings are chickens I have helped to care for and raise.
I love how birds remind me to just be. They remind me I can sing if I want to, and that my voice is welcome in their chorus.
Birds are majestic creatures regardless of their size, and I’ve rarely met a bird I didn’t like.
I am so happy that I live with birds surrounding me, and this time of year through summer my days and nights will be filled with their vocal presence.
And in the other seasons, that will also return, I will have my painted reminders of the birds’ important lessons.
And you too, could have these reminders if you wish.
Let my painted birds remind you of spring’s return and the joys of summer, today, and in every season.
Wishing you many spring elation moments if you’re in the Northern Hemisphere. And many joyful bird encounters wherever you may be.
xo,
KCF
PS: Not able to buy a painting today. That’s ok! The next best way to support me as an artist in these times is to join as a monthly member to my ko-fi site. My members get early access and behind the scenes action not seen anywhere else. See you there!
PPS: I’ve officially launched my YouTube Channel!
