Ok, this week’s delight is a delight within a delight. First, and most importantly, I can take a walk outside. I can, in fact, take a walk outside every day – as many times a day as I want. I am in sunny, snow-free, ice-free, frigid-free Florida. I do not take this for granted. My friends text me periodically, reminding me how long it has been since they have been able to step outside other than to grab the newspaper, which is never quite close enough to the front door.
So, on my walk a few days ago, I saw a bluebird. It was kind of hard to believe, but I saw a pair of bluebirds. They look to be the same kind of bluebird we in Minnesota work so hard to attract and maintain by building all those sweet little wooden birdhouses you see along the fence posts in the country.
I have no idea what the habits and habitats of these little birds are, but I sense that while they are endangered in Minnesota, they certainly don’t seem to be in trouble here. I’ve seen them more than a few times.
The delight in these birds is the color blue. It is just so stunning. I told my husband about this, and he said, “Well, yes, there is very little in nature that is blue.” Wouldn’t you know that exact same day there was an article in the New York Times, making the same observation as my oh-so-wise husband.
The writers claim that blue is “… nearly impossible to find in nature. The blues that abound in nature — a butterfly, a navy beetle, even blue eyes — are not natively blue, according to scientists, but instead are reflections of light, the impression of blue.”
I don’t understand it, just like I don’t understand the many many explanations as to why the sky is blue. But I appreciate it.
So, I was delighted to see this bluebird on my walk. A rare sight and a real joy in the time of COVID.