The Wonder of Hummingbirds

Ann H GabhartAnn's Posts, One Writer's Journal

“Hummingbird darts lightly through the world, spreading its message of
joy and beauty, and teaching us to appreciate the wonder and magic of
everyday existence. Hummingbird brings the gift of joy. Learn to laugh
and be happy.”
~Unknown author



I love seeing hummingbirds. They do seem nearly magic as they hover and drink from the throats of flowers. Just the sight of them or the sound of them buzzing past my head brings a smile. I put out a feeder every year to attract the little jewels of nature to my porch. The ruby-throated hummer is the only one I’ve ever seen in this area, but he’s a beauty. And a wonder as shown in this quote. 

 The ruby-throated hummingbird is a wonder of migration. Every winter it
makes an amazing journey. Some have been known to make a journey of 2500
miles or more, from Alaska to Central America. Because of it, the
hummingbird is a symbol for accomplishing that which seems impossible.
It will teach you how to find the miracle of joyful living from your own
life circumstances
. ~ Ted Andrews 

The one in my picture is a female. Amazingly enough, every spring the very first time I see this hummer or one like her is when she buzzes my office window as though to tell me, “Okay, I’m here. Get with it and put that feeder out.” I obey her command and don’t see her at my window again. At least not until I have flowers in my window boxes. Then she just works through the flowers and ignores the window. Unless I let the feeder run dry the way I did today. And here she is, not sipping from the flowers, but instead hovering on the outside of my window and staring straight at me as if to say, “What’s the matter with you? Don’t you know a hummingbird has to eat?” Needless to say, the hummingbird feeder is freshly cleaned and filled this evening.

Thinking about hummingbirds and the way they can astound us seems to fit well with the Olympics going on now. Those athletes do amazing things through dedication and training. Every day in the gym or running or swimming. For hours. Every day for years. Focused completely on improving their natural abilities to compete on the world’s stage. I watched some of the women doing the hurdles today. Looked as impossible to me as the hummingbird flying backward.  

One more beautiful hummingbird quote. 
  
“Hummingbird shows us how to re-visit the past for the purpose of
releasing it instead of being caught in a permanently backward flight
pattern. It also helps us to see that if we step aside we may see our
life differently. Hummingbird teaches us to transcend time, to recognize
that what has happened in the past and what might happen in the future
is not nearly as important as what we are experiencing now. It teaches
us to hover in the moment, to appreciate its sweetness.”

– Constance Barrett Sohodski

May we all hover in the moment and appreciate its sweetness. As always, thanks for reading. Do you have a hummingbird story? If so, share it with us.