The Backyard

Stepping out into my backyard is like stepping into a world of varied colors and sounds. 

  Bounding right behind me and, in a flash before me, is my tall labradoodle, Jay, in all his black shaggy cuteness.  He loves his garden and spends the time he is out there sniffing anything that could be a telltale sign of creatures passing in the night.  He loves to sniff everything.  Often you can find him with his face buried in some plant, the nostrils moving in any and all directions trying to figure out what that particularly interesting smell was.  

  When my family first bought the house, the backyard was a mess of dirt and rubble.  But it has now come to be a place where we love to take photographs, show off to guests, relax or just watch the sun set and the moon rise overhead.   

  Many a celestial event have we witnessed from our backyard.  Most times though we don’t need an excuse to look up at the sky.  As long as the sky is clear, we can still see the planets, the moon and the stars in spite of the city lights. 

 

From the backyard, if we are silent, we can see and hear the birds.  They are quite a talkative bunch, gorgeous little chirpers. 

Once in a while a bigger bird would come or a squirrel, desperate to have what they are having, would brave the watchful eye of the black lightning.

A little white butterfly flitted gracefully by, riding an invisible wave. Meanwhile a bumblebee (a very busy bee) buzzed from one flower to another, unable to decide which one was the most succulent.  Above a lone turkey vulture graced the skies with its long wings, each feather highlighted by the sun’s rays. 

 

A peaceful scene enacted on a holiday (a quietness enveloping the backyard while the world around was in a frenzy – entertaining, traveling, working…): a hummingbird occasionally perched on a vacant branch, its tireless wings earning a much-deserved rest, an insect quietly living its life, a frog waiting for the next rainfall.

It being a warm day, my Jay relaxed in the shade, the cool breeze fanning through the very grateful floppy ears.  Eyes, half closed, tongue hanging out to the side, the pooch flopped out on the cool tiled garden floor…totally content with the world, mom by his side.

The occasional faraway bark of a distant neighbor barely eliciting a slightly raised curious head before the latter lay back down, a huge sigh escaping the now sleepy furry body.