My Garden Robin

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Anyone else have a garden Robin?

Meet my Garden Robin, whose favourite food is suet pellets. This little bird appears to have taken up residence in my back garden where I’ve provided a bird table and some feeders to try to ensure a continual supply of bird food.
 
I’ve read that Robins are territorial and that the bright colour may be used as a threat to rivals. I haven’t observed aggression of any kind but I know this Robin will interact with me in a way none of the other birds have ever done. Sometimes he appears to be quite fearless.
 
I discovered that the half coconut shell works well since he has somewhere to perch while grabbing a pellet.  On the day I captured the photo of him perched on top of the bird table, one source of great amusement was that moments after this photo was snapped, he flew towards me and landed and sat on top of the camera lens. I was using a Nikon 70-200 which is 7 inches long, so he was literally sitting inches from my face. I’m  not sure if he was trying to tell me something but it sure gave me a good laugh.
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Remembering my dad on this Father’s Day

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It’s Father’s Day today (Sunday 19th June 2022) as I write this, and I have just returned from a visit to the cemetery where the remains of my father and mother are buried. It was a poignant visit, not least because Dad died on this day 23 years ago, 19th June, 1999, aged 81. As I look back, I’m forever grateful for loving parents and the ‘values’ they taught me. 

I’m also reminded of the the Sunday just a few days before his death, when he knew he had just a short time left. In hospital, with his family at his bedside, he sat up in bed for the last time and announced to us, “I have peace perfect peace. I haven’t a care in the world. I’m ready to go.” That moment has remained with me and my three sisters who were present, ever since. None of us are likely to ever forget it. It’s something all the money that could be accumulated during a lifetime couldn’t buy. Dad displayed an eternal, spiritual perspective throughout my lifetime. How he faced death says a lot about the way he lived; and the way he died.

 

Dad, enjoying time with his granddaughter; my eldest daughter, Chloe, now married with two children of her own.
Dad, enjoying time with his granddaughter; my eldest daughter, Chloe, now married with two children of her own.
Dad when he was in his forties, father to three girls and one boy (me).
Dad when he was in his forties, father to three girls and one boy (me).

As I took a stroll through the cemetery this afternoon, however, I was reminded that not everyone had the privilege of having a dad who lived a full and long life, and then passed away peacefully. I saw too many tombstones remembering fathers’ who were taken from this earth as relatively young men, many during the Troubles in Northern Ireland. Children had to grow up without a father, and family and friends were left devastated and heartbroken. For many, that deep level of pain and grief continues to this day, even after decades. So, as I reflect on this Father’s Day, my heart goes out to those who are suffering through loss, and my thoughts and prayers are with them.