The old straw hat ain’t what she used to be.
In the front, there is a permanent droop .The silk flowers are perky but looked dated, like maybe they bloomed last spring.
Still, I kept it around. It was good for being out in the sun. But not quite right as a fashion statement for Sunday service.
Then I saw a photo in a catalog of an old straw hat with a bunch of flowers on one side. It wasn’t real. This was ceramic, a copy of the real thing. Some designer put a hole in the middle, added a perch and called it a birdhouse.
Bingo. It struck a chord with me. The first day of spring had come and gone. So had World Water Day. And I had yet to celebrate or contribute. Here’s my chance.
Cutting a U-shaped opening in the top of the hat, I tied it down the flap with a string. This became the landing pad.
Nailing the old straw hat on an outside wall, I wondered if birds would even notice this new nest. They did. The very next day a Carolina wren couple took up residence. Mr. and Mrs. Wren moved in without a bank loan or waiting for a closing date. Their credit, it appears, was excellent.
The house, of course, came empty. No furnishings.
The expectant parents took care of that. They carried bits of twigs, huge leaves, shreds of Spanish moss in a steady stream of deliveries. Somehow all this got matted down and arranged into a deep interior cavity. The nest was ready.
It didn’t take long for the eggs to hatch. Two babies. That’s what I can see from a distance with binoculars.
The little ones must have permanent neck aches from stretching their beaks up and keeping their mouths open. They are perpetually hungry. Whatever they just ate, it is history, they’re ready for more.
Mom and Dad take the chore of going to the grocery store to new heights. They bring food in a steady stream. The routine: both go away, come back one at a time, sit on the patio chair to look around and see if it is safe, then hop up to the straw hat nest. The food goes in, disappears into hungry mouths, Mom flies away for more, Then Dad, who’s been waiting on the patio chair, flies in with his food.
The family is growing up right before our very eyes and it is exciting to have them as neighbors. All this coming and going is happening right outside the back porch.
Lately Mom and Dad have taken to sitting on the top of a patio chair and chirping in the direction of the nest. One of these days the babies, who have stayed hidden in the back, will come forth and test their wings.
Bur right now they are just beginning to get feathers and eating like teenagers who constantly wail, “isn’t there anything to eat around here?”
Earth Day is about to arrive, on Saturday, April 22, not that Mr. and Mrs. Carolina Wren are looking at a calendar. They’re too busy celebrating spring by doing the family thing.
But we should care. If you haven’t connected yet with the world outside, if spring has sprung and you’re still stuck in winter, now is the time to change your season.
In Vermont, on Earth Day, volunteers will be having a weed pull, tearing out invasive weeds in Hartland, Vermont.
In Florida, volunteers are going to plant native plants in and around a pond at Tiger Creek near Lake Wales.
Both of these projects are part of the Nature Conservancy’s Earth Day activities. Go on line and see what’s happening in your area. You don’t have to be a member of the Nature Conservancy to volunteer. Just show up.
The Web address is: www.nature.org/earthday
If you want to do something closer to home, rummage through your closet and find an old straw hat, or any hat. Cut a flap in the top, tied down the flap. Find a hammer and some nails. Put up the old hat outside. Mr. and Mrs. Wren will appreciate the nest site.
Or plant a plant that butterflies can use to lay their eggs. Like cassia for sulfurs or a passion vine for zebra longwings and milkweed for monarchs.
Did you know butterflies are dying out because they can’t reproduce? Butterflies need specific plants to lay their eggs. If they can’t find them, they can’t reproduce.
Back yards and front yards have become so sterile, just grass and bushes, there is no place for them to lay their eggs, no plants for them, and that means no future generations.
Butterfly World in Florida has a campaign called “Bring Back the Butterflies.” To find out what plants are right for your region of the United States, go to www.butterflyworld.com
When you are done volunteering, nesting and planting, stand back and be proud. You are now part of the solution to saving Mother Earth.
Happy Earth Day.
Lucy Beebe Tobias is a freelance writer in Ocala, Florida. She is working on a book “50 Great Walks in Florida” ©2006 Lucy Tobias