“My heart wants to beat like the wings of the birds that rise from the lake to the trees. My heart wants to sigh like a chime that flies from a church on a breeze. To laugh like a brook when it trips and falls over stones on its way. To sing through the night like a lark who is learning to pray.”

— Written by Oscar Hammerstein II, “The Sound of Music” (1959)

While sitting at the breakfast table I saw a hummingbird flitting around the porch where the hummingbird feeder hung last year. I had not put the feeder out, thinking it was a bit too early, but apparently it was not early enough. By the next day I had three feeders out and two hummingbirds feeding. Of course, they were fighting even though the placement of the feeders allowed them to “social distance.”

Some years back I was visited by the Hummingbird Lady. She kindly suggested red dye should never be used in the feeders. Red dye is harmful to the birds and it was a bit amateurish. There is some controversy over whether or not the dye is harmful. The chemical name for Red Dye #40 is a mile long. Though the dye is approved by the FDA in the U.S., based on its uncertainty it is banned in a number of other countries. An easy hummingbird mixture is simply 4 cups of water to 1 cup of sugar. Based on the Hummingbird Lady’s comment and not wanting to look amateurish, I quickly purchased two red glass feeders. Then last week I purchased two more red glass feeders. Even if not a single hummingbird comes to feed, the feeders themselves are beautiful and bring much joy to the morning.

Every year for the past few years I issue a warning for the protection of the hummingbird population. One year I noticed a praying mantis perched on the hummingbird feeder. I didn’t think much about it, only that maybe it was awaiting insects attracted by the sugar water. Mantises are predators and it is very likely they are stalking the hummingbird. As far-fetched as it would seem, there are a number of websites and videos of mantises capturing hummingbirds with the spikes on their forearms and legs. They are killers. Mantises are quick and their heads turn 180 degrees. They have the ability to blend into their surroundings. I was able to rid my feeders of mantises by thumping them to the ground below and hoping they found nourishment elsewhere. Keep in mind, they are not praying. They are preying.

With spring comes a number of other creatures lifting the spirits. Sparrows are chirping and locating nesting possibilities. Safety does not seem to enter their little minds. Carpenter bees are buzzing bee boxes. Carpenter bees will build their home in our home so we have to be on the lookout. Armadillos aerate the lawn. Frogs bellow while lightning bugs light up trees in the night.

But my favorite spring event is Holy Week leading up to Easter. I didn’t grow up in a church that practiced all of Holy Week, but I have learned to love it. Palm Sunday means children walking church aisles waving palm branches. Maundy Thursday is being mindful of the Lord’s Last Supper with his disciples. Good Friday is a solemn day reflecting the crucifixion while Easter, also called Resurrection Day, is all out celebration! Out of darkness into the light. Let it be so.

Shannon Bardwell is a writer living quietly in the Prairie. Email reaches her at [email protected].

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