Relief!..even if for a short while!

We are in the midst of a severe drought. Not just a few weeks with no rain..months. That coupled with the intense heat has actually caused a few wildfires here..one, and perhaps the most notable was just a few days ago when part of Deer Island burned. Deer Island is just off the beach of Biloxi and while I doubt there are any deer there, it is the home of several species of animals including alligators, snapping turtles, many birds. Several of the sea birds use the area as a nesting habitat so the fire could have threatened some of the baby birds. The smoke actually filled the air all the way to my peaceful Bayou and gave me an unsettling feeling.

But today..rain! Not much, just a bit. A five minute shower cooled things a bit and even though it dried almost immediately, we will take any we can get. Rain! Ahh! It is amazing the effect this can have. Plants, that in spite of my daily watering looked horrible, almost instantly perked their leaves! I noticed many of the birds stretching their wings as if to catch every drop of the delightful blessing. I am sure that this felt much better than my water hose showers that they are accustomed to receiving every afternoon. I have several birds and one squirrel that will actually come to bathe or drink as I water the plants. Poor darlings!

After the shower, Hubby and I headed to the pier. There, on a rope strung between two posts, were several immature Swallows. I could tell that they were a type of Swallow merely by their shape, but as all baby birds are more or less drab in color, a specific typing was difficult. I had to laugh at the antics of these small birds, however. Three of them were in a line on the rope. The middle bird seemed to be doing some sort of exercise regime to the disgust of those on either side of it. Each time the middle of the three would stretch his wings, one on the side of it would turn its head as if to say.."Phew! Now that is some smelly underwings!" That little bird would then proceed to move a few steps away from the middle one. The same thing happened when Mr. Middleman decided to stretch the other wing. "Oh, my gosh! Do you never shower?" the other little bird would seem to chirp as it moved a few steps further down the rope. Mr. Middleman never batted an eye and just continued with his midday workout. Such cute little Swallows! I am not sure where they nested but sure hope they stay on the Bayou. Swallows catch so many flying insects that it would be nice to have them catch a few of the gnats and mosquitoes that thrive in the marsh. This sure would make fishing a tad bit more enjoyable!