May 18, 2015

Four and Twenty Blackbirds

Oops! White-winged Doves!

May 18, 2015

There is a children's nursery rhyme/song titled Sing a Song of Sixpence and part of the first verse says, "Four and Twenty Blackbirds baked in a pie...".  As with many children's nursery rhymes, we have discovered as adults, that these songs or poems were written to ridicule the royalty in Great Brittan.  As a child, learning the verse, I could never imagine 24 blackbirds fitting into a pie.  This morning I looked out the window at the open, flat bird feeder and I think now I can imagine 24 blackbirds in a pie.  The feeder was sometimes two levels deep in White-winged Doves.

 While the feeder was overflowing with birds, the tree above it constantly had a waiting line as they tried to figure out where they could land on the feeder.  I found it a little hard to get photos of them in the tree because they would rapidly pace back and forth along the branch  looking for a landing spot in the feeder and as soon as they thought they had found out they quickly flew to it.

This morning before I left for the office, I did spend time enjoying the birds and taking a few photos.  They are interesting characters.  Some will try to chase all the other birds away.  Most will share without causing a scene.

 At the office, it was a little slow.  I waited on some customers and the Bible verse I shared recently about encouraging one another came to mind as I waited on one lady.  She had asked me for 3 keys and when I handed them to her she said she had changed her mind and wanted 4.  She had apparently tried to tell me that while I was at the noisy machine with my back to her.  I told her I had a hearing problem and I had not heard her.  In halting English, she said she was afraid she had said it wrong in English.  Her word choices were perfect but she did have a strong accent and maybe because she was unsure, she was very soft spoken.

When I returned the lady's change to her, she mentioned that she was taking an English class and I told her that it was working; that she was doing very well.  She just seemed to glow with that tiny bit of praise.  She said she tries hard and makes herself speak in English when she has the chance so she can learn.  I told her that any misunderstanding on my part was my hearing and not her English.  I think she floated out the door.  I hope I will listen to the clues that customers give (she said she was taking an English class), and encourage them when I can.

 String-pieced blocks - Scrap quilt

Since it was slow, I spent time during the morning cutting strips for the string pieced quilt squares that I am working on.  After lunch I sat down to sew and in between helping customers while Ron was busy and paying a few bills, I got 5 more blocks made.  It was time to move that project to the larger design wall and take down the finished Cat Quilt.  I added two more rows to the Cat Quilt this evening and replaced one square that I had repeated in the quilt.

Cat Quilt

The increased size of the Cat quilt was the right choice.  I am pleased with it.  Now I just need to get it quilted!  This evening I had been cutting more strips from the scrap basket for the string-pieced blocks.

 When I left the office, I went by Mom's house.  My sister and brother-in-law are there, but I wanted to see how Mom's eye exam was this afternoon.  It went well and the doctor said there had not been much change since the last exam.  I came on home and fixed supper for us as Ron moved the sprinklers in the yard.  

At Mom's I was hearing well but suddenly everything was mumbled.  I think something must have been turned on that covered up people's voices.  Carmen was working in the kitchen and she could have started the dishwasher or disposal.  Strange.  But I didn't have time to really try to figure it out.