Love of nature was a gift from mom

The sun was finally shining after weeks of rain and dreary weather. I was happily pulling grass out of the front flowerbed when I felt something plop onto the back of my hand. It startled me and I yelped. The toad that was softly perched on my hand was still for a second then it jumped up my arm. Fearing it would hop on up to my shoulder or further, I tipped it into some daffodils and decided that was enough weeding for the day.
A few days earlier I thought I saw a fox running through the yard. I only caught a glimpse of it so I wasn’t sure. A day or so after that I was walking in the park and I saw a fox sitting calmly in the sun. We watched each other for a minute or two and I wished I had a camera to capture its beauty. Since I didn’t, I continued on. The vixen paralleled my path. I wondered why until I saw the babies pop out of the grass. She had been keeping herself between me and her kits.
The enthusiasm the little fuzzballs showed when they saw their mom was heartwarming. After letting them kiss her and cavort for a bit, she led them into the woods. They disappeared in seconds. I went back the way I came in order not to bother them more.
At home I found that our sentinel bees were back. They are really carpenter bees, or maybe mason bees but they act like sentinels at the front door. The fat, fuzzy bees don’t hurt anybody. They simply check out any and all visitors. One flew so close that it ruffled my hair. In a month or so I will find little bee corpses and that will be the end of them until next year.
The evil black squirrel living in our eaves scampered in and out of her nest with barely a glance at me. I am hoping that she will find a different home once her babies are out on their own. I keep meaning to climb up there and check out the damages.
When I did my weekly shopping I picked up some rosemary and parsley. It is too early for parsley, but I thought I would take a chance. Then I saw some wilted pansies. Pansies were my mom’s favorite flower. They joined the herbs in my cart.
I swung by the local Dairy Queen for lunch. After slurping the delicious, calorie-laden Blizzard, I headed outside. The new plants were quickly nestled in their new homes. The pansies perked up when they realized they now had easy access to water and their roots could spread out at will. My mom would have approved.
I want to call her to tell her about the foxes. I want to make her laugh about the toad. I want to plant pansies for her.
Those days are over. She is no longer in the world of foxes, toads and flowers.
But I am and so are you. There is new life all around. Flowers bloom then fade away, making room for the next wave of beauty. Wild animals live among us and we are surprised and pleased when they allow us to see them.
I am grateful that my mom gave me the love of nature even though she was a city girl. She hated living in the country as much as I loved it. Because of her, I learned to tell stories that unseen people read. I also learned that if I wait a day or so the toad will find another hiding place and I can get back to the unending task of removing crabgrass from the flower bed.
The sun is shining. The air is warm. Let’s go out and enjoy it.