Monday, January 18, 2016

It's The Little Things

Don't we hear this statement many times?: "It's the little things in life that matter".  Frankly, it's pretty true, especially when blogging!   I was thinking of what I could put on the blog tonight and looked over my pics in the camera. There were a few "little things"..like a scene from an Alfred Hitchcock movie.
My front yard was covered in tons and tons of black birds and even a few Robins. (They must not have gotten the memo that they are to leave and return in the Spring).  Imagine this photo expanded...I was trying not to disturb them but when they figured out they were being spied on they took off for the trees.
They look like leaves !
Here's one of the Robins hanging by some left over crabapple morsels. It was a bit creepy seeing them and I couldn't figure out why they were there.  I guess they were on a trip and my yard was a pit stop because they knew the temps were plunging downward.  Today it was only a high of 12de.   A severe weather alert for frigid temps is on through tomorrow.  Hopefully all these feathered friends made it home to some place warm!   Another pic was one that made me happy. Our good buddy Greg is a Vietnam Vet and he had us over to his home a few weeks ago to show us a special scrapbook he made.  He had pictures and newspaper clippings and other things he had collected while in the war.  He was in the Mekong Delta in the heart of the fighting.  His stories and photos are compelling.  What's really cool is the fact he's going to Vietnam next week and taking his sons with him to the places he fought.  He's not taking  a tourist tour..just those villages.  With his permission I went to our newspaper and told them about the trip and the scrapbook and how I felt it would be a great article.  He didn't hear from them and I thought it wasn't going to happen.  But he received a call for an interview and on Saturday he was on the front page.  I hope his trip is a good one for him...closure perhaps and also a chance to see a different Vietnam and his return to be a happier one instead to the original one many servicemen received when they returned from Nam...Good luck Greg!
To close out the weekend I made some bread.  I've never been a superior bread maker but I found a recipe that I like and it turns out good every time.  It makes the house smell wonderful and on a cold wintery day it's a winner.  However, I'm trying not to eat bread so I'm giving it away and I also took a loaf to work.  One loaf went to a lady in our church who was sick.  Little things that brought some big smiles.
I can live with that! And I can blog with that too! Find those little things in life this week...they are the things that truly matter.

11 comments:

Julia said...

Oh my, that bread sure looks good. A good piece of butter on the heel of the bread and I'm in heaven. I'vas just saying that today. I must make some bread. You are just the incentive I needed...

You're right, about the little things that make a blog. I hope those poor birds find a warm hedge to get out of the cold and that they can find some feeders full of seeds. They are confused with the warmer than usual temperatures.

Stay safe and warm.
Hugs,
JB

MunirGhiasuddin said...

Your post today is for my husband as well as me. He is always fascinated by black birds and how they are together. He agrees and so do I that little things do matter.
By the way you are quite a photographer.
That bread sure looks very warm on this cold day. Enjoy !

Shady Del Knight said...

There you go, dear Yaya! A couple of weeks ago you were doubting that you could find enough things to blog about. Here you presented three interesting stories rolled into one post. Mrs. Shady and I watched The Birds a few weeks ago and the second and third pictures look like production stills from the movie. It is indeed a mystery why a robin is still hanging around your vicinity. Maybe the warm start to your winter last month convinced him to stay. I hope by now he's well on his way down to my neck of the woods. Even this far south he won't find much relief because it's downright cold here tonight, "the coldest night of the year," as the song goes. How special that you contacted the newspaper and got your Vietnam vet neighbor's story on the front page! His pilgrimage to Vietnam with his sons will surely be a bonding experience and an opportunity for closure. Bless you for baking bread and sharing it with co-workers and the needy of your church.

This was an excellent post and I enjoyed it, YaYa! Have a great week, dear friend!

betty said...

Oh my gosh; all those birds! What a sight to see! That was neat about your friend being featured in the newspaper; sounds like a good human interest story. I hope his trip to Vietnam is a good one with his children! Yum on the bread!!!

betty

gin said...

Great pictures of the birds. That's a great story about your friend Greg.

Laurie said...

I haven't seen many Robins yet, but law...the Cardinals are camping out at the lake. I'm not complaining. I love them! What a wonderful story about Greg. That will be a trip of a lifetime for him and his sons. Lastly, you'll have to share your bread recipe sometime. Love homemade bread.

Kerri said...

Thanks for the reminder-I'm hoping to get back to posting the "little things" on my blog...which of course make up our life. I think it's pretty neat that your friend Greg is taking his son's to Vietnam to see where he served years ago...and that he made the paper. Those are the kind of articles that I like to read...not all the negative stuff that usually makes the front page! I hope he has a wonderful trip this time around.

Susan Anderson said...

Your bread looks yummy and your birds kinda creepy! ;)

Sounds like an interesting story from your Vietnam vet friend. I would be interested in hearing him talk about the war. Not many men I know are really willing to. I hope his trip is a valuable and memorable experience for them all.

=)

selvageedge said...

Lots and lots of clouds of black birds around these parts lately. I suppose they were as confused about our winter weather as we have been. I sure hope they got to someplace much warmer, and that the blackbirds took the robins with them.

Greg is an amazing man. He has a strength of character that few men do. This should be a wonderful trip for him and his sons. I hope that they find that many good changes have taken place.

Debby said...

Vietnam Nam was a horrible war. You didn't hear from the soldiers for long periods of time. The conditions were just horrible. I think if you survived you were changed forever. Even the ones that served in our country at that time have the sad memories. I lost several friends. I remember when the traveling wall came near our home. I walked right up to it and there was my friends name. Such a strange coincidence.
The bread looks so good.

Stacy said...

Beautiful bread. It is the little things that matter most, or what you miss when family is gone. Kind of like counting blessings...