5/04/2012

Birding for Mother's Day!

My mother was a birder, so I grew up watching cardinals at the window feeder and listening to bird songs on the record player.  I also grew up visiting Mass Audubon Sanctuaries frequently, so I think it's fitting that I honor my mother by participating in Bird-a-thon on Mother's day weekend.  After all, I wouldn't be able to bird for 24 hours straight if I hadn't learned birding at my mother's knee, so to speak.  

Bird-a-thon will be crazed and exhausting and fun, as usual.   My goal is to increase the number of species we see by at least 10.  Tom and I were so intensely focused on shorebirds last year that we forgot to look for familiar feeder birds like the American Goldfinch pictured above. (Such idiocy is hard to believe, I know!)  Believe me, that won't happen again.  This year Mother's Day will be on my mind, and I'll remember my mothers favorite backyard bird without fail!

My mother taught me all about birds, but I am just one of many amateur birders that she inspired.  Her four siblings used to laugh at mom's bird-watching, but eventually every one of them had a feeder or two in their own back yards!  I know that many of my mom's nieces and nephews are at least casual birders, and that all my cousins brought their kids up with a real appreciation of birds and nature in general, as I did.  My second cousin's blog, BirdingGirl, inspired me to start blogging myself, and now my son has a birding blog (Nature of Oregon), too.  Three bird bloggers in one family, for goodness sake!

I admit that I was less than enthusiastic about tagging along on bird-walks as a kid - especially before I got my first pair of glasses.  I was blind as a bat, and couldn't see a bird in my hand, never mind a bird in a bush (or a tree, for that matter.)  But Mom never gave up on me.  She dragged my sister and I to every birding hot-spot in the state long before anyone invented Important Bird Areas (IBAs).  Looking back, I can't help but wonder how the real birders put up with two little kids tagging along on trips to Block Island or Mt. Auburn Cemetery.  (BTW, I'm the one with the glasses; my mother is the tall one, and my sister is the blond.)

Mother's Day is going to be really tough for our family this year.  Mom's been in a Nursing Home for over a week now, and that is a desperately sad place for anyone to be.  I doubt I would have signed up for Bird-a-thon if I had known what was ahead for my mom.  I want to cry every time I think about how excited she was to learn that I was giving another Bird-a-thon presentation for all her friends at Carmel Terrace.  She told every resident that they had to attend, never imagining that she wouldn't be attending as a resident herself.  It hurts just thinking about it, but the show will go on anyway.  I'm doing the presentation in her honor, and she'll be there to see it if I have to carry her there!

Actually, participating in Bird-a-thon and raising money for Mass Audubon is a very appropriate way of celebrating my mother on Mother's day.  It is thanks to her that I love nature and it is thanks to her that I love birds and birding.  What better way to show my gratitude than raising money for Mass Audubon and helping to ensure the nature of Massachusetts will still be here for other generations to enjoy?

Donating to Bird-a-thon is an excellent way to honor your mother this Mother's Day.  Why not make a donation in her name right now?  

7 comments:

  1. Hi there,
    I'm looking for a way to contact you (the blog author) about image permission for two of the graphics posted about the Framingham drumlins. I'm working on a native planting design for a site located on one of Framingham's drumlins. Please contact me at the following email address: ksc.design.sc@gmail.com
    Thanks!
    Kate

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  2. Beautiful post! I love the picture of you Jane and your mom. I owe your mom credit for getting me into birding too! I hope you had fun at Bird-a-thon :) My mom told me your presentation went very well- wish I could have been there. xoxo Catie

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    1. Thank you, Catie! Mom may have inspired you to be a birder, but YOU inspired both Pete and I to start blogging. As far as we're concerned, you're still the best of the best! You're an angel, and we all love you very much. :)

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  3. Love that photo-has such a nostalgic look.It's a wonderful gift that your mother passed on to you-an appreciation of bird watching. A memory that you'll always carry with you. Great bird photos too btw.

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    1. Thank you, Larry. My husband says I haven't changed a bit!

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  4. Great picture of the blackbird, and the picture of you with Gramma and aunt Jane is AWESOME!!! As you have said, I also have Gramma to thank for my favorite hobby! I remember watching her feeder and looking at field guides with her from a very young age. She taught me all the backyard birds and I knew them even then. When I wanted to get into birding all those years later. You retrained me at our backyard feeder in Sharon. Thank you both so much. Happy Mothers Day!! -Love Pete

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    1. Oh, it's so good to hear from you, Pete! Daddy says I haven't changed a bit since that picture. He's cute, isn't he? I hope you have more African photos to share. We all have multiple copies of the captive Sunbird!

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