Bayou Friends

  I ponder a good many things as I meander around the Bayou.  Mostly, these ponderings revolve around the critters that inhabit the area.  Do they realize that their home is slowly diminishing to just a few acres? With all of the property around me being sold, clear-cut and developed into housing areas, little is left in the way of homes for critters.  It saddens me.  I have tried to keep our place as a natural habitat for whatever wants to reside next to me.  Most all critters are welcome and only the domesticated interlopers that present a problem for the wild critters are viewed with disdain.  Not that I mind pets, I just hold great disrespect for folks who do not care for their pets.  That said, I do feel a certain connection with most wild critters.

  For some odd reason, I seem to relate mostly with the birds of the Bayou.  I have come to look at them as friends.  They turn to me in times of need.  If they become injured or ill, they know that I will do all in my power to heal them.  If the food source becomes scarce, they can be assured that I will surely find something to tide them over the hard times.  If they just need a friend, I am there.  What I find strange is that most of the birds reciprocate the kindness.  Granted they have not provided me with nutrition as of yet, but they do bring me a sense of comfort.  I have had quail eat from my hand and come linger under my old, wicker chair.  Herons and egrets come to be hand-fed menhaden. Hawks and owls follow me about the hillside while mockingbirds serenade me from the window ledge.  Their attention comforts me and brings me joy.  

  One of my favorite feathered friends is the Brown Pelican.  The only interaction I have with them is verbal.  I talk with the birds and often wonder if they understand.  One, in particular, seems to respond to my conversations.  This fine fellow sits on the pier post and tilts his head as if he is listening to my every word.  Call it wishful thinking, if you like, but I tend to think of him as a friend.  Funny how that is.  I seem to have more "critter" friends than "people" friends.  I am not sure if that is due to the fact that animals like me or if  perhaps people do not.  Either way....I am happy with the situation the way it is.