Photo by Matthew Schwartz from Unsplash
Aloft, I can see
the wide world spread before me.
Aloft, I am free.
Aloft, I can fly
the wide, blue expanse of sky,
watching clouds drift by.
Aloft, I can see
beyond triviality.
Aloft, I am free.
Aloft in sunbeams,
following free-flowing streams,
discovering dreams.
Aloft, I can see
worlds of possibility.
Aloft, I am free.
Copyright© 2024 by Cheryl Batavia
Photo by Alexandra Gorn from Unsplash
Recovering from surgery, I sat
bemoaning Florida’s rare frigid days.
No matter where we set the thermostat,
I couldn’t get warm; I was cold…always!
Too cold to get up, two days in my bed,
too cold for walking in drizzling rain!
I pulled the covers way up to my head,
binge-watching movies to forget my pain.
The next day, I sat in my easy chair,
reading Celebrating Poetry;
I found encouragement and comfort there,
and Cindy’s kind words motivated me.
Next day, warmer, I walked in the sunshine,
and, thanks to Cindy, I knew I’d be fine!
Copyright© 2025 by Cheryl Batavia
Celebrating Poetry is an insightful and inspiring book by Cindy Georgakas. Cindy’s beautifully expressed poems challenge us to examine our perspectives and to live our best lives.
For the full story of my illness see “The Colors of My Life,” https://gulfcoastpoet.com/2025/o1/27/the-colors-of-my-life/
Photo of a gray squirrel by Brad from Unsplash
Photo of a squirrel by Praswin Prokash from Unsplash
Who is top diner at the feeder?
Nobody dares to challenge or quarrel
with this unelected leader;
the king of birdseed is…the squirrel!
Red-bellied woodpecker. Photo by Jack Bulmer from Unsplash
Photo of Eastern blue jay by Matthew Schwartz from Unsplash
Woodpecker with rapier beak
is top bird at the table.
Even aggressive blue jays seldom seek
to resist him… They’re not able!
Mourning Doves. Photo by Stephan Gogov from Unsplash
Doves in pairs feed side-by-side…
Woodpeckers and jays are intimidated!
For doves in teams, they stand aside…
teamwork to be emulated!
Photo of cardinal by Stephen Walker from Unsplash
Cardinals, bright, spritely little creatures,
take everything in stride.
They’re much more than their flashy features…
They model confidence and pride.
Tufted Titmouse. Photo by Jack Bulmer from Unsplash
Tiny titmice hang out on the ground
as diners scatter seeds on the lawn,
eating leftovers they have found,
visiting feeders when bullies are gone.
Photo of grey catbird by Jack Bulmer from Unsplash
Photo of brown thrasher by Joshua J. Cotten from Unsplash
Catbirds and brown thrashers
visit feeders sporadically.
All birds flee these party crashers
who disrupt community hierarchy!
Photo by J. A. Uppendahl from Unsplash
Photo of rabbit by Andrew Coop from Unsplash
Raw peanuts scattered on the ground
attract everyone, even rats and rabbits.
Squirrel visits to feeders slow down…
a pause in squirrels’ pushy habits!
Squirrel eating a peanut. Photo by Ms. Uppy from Unsplash
Hope you enjoyed this overview
of backyard politics and pecking rights.
Feeders bring animals close to you…
Proximity provides fresh insights!
Copyright© 2024 by Cheryl Batavia
Note to Prospective Bird Feeder Owners:
Bird feeders are outlawed in California. Signs in many places say, “Danger! Do Not Feed the Bears!” or “Unlawful to Feed Wildlife Here” or “Don’t Feed the Alligators!” There are good reasons for such warnings. Feeding some wild animals can cause them to lose their fear of people and become aggressive and dangerous. Feeding some wild animals can make them dependent on humans and less able to survive on their own.
In our neighborhood, lots are being cleared for new construction, and animal habitats are disappearing at a fairly rapid rate. Endangered gopher tortoises in our neighborhood have been displaced, losing their homes when a new house was built on the site of their ancestral burrows.
Gopher tortoise at burrow. Photo in the public domain, origin unknown
We often see gopher tortoises eating grass in our yard and believe they may have dug new burrows in the wooded lot behind our house. The underground network of gopher tortoise burrows is routinely used by a variety of animals, so the impact of losing these safe passages is not limited to the tortoises who dug the burrows.
A new house was recently built diagonally behind us. I think some of the birds and animals we are seeing at the bird feeders once made their homes on the site of the new house.
I don’t know whether I am doing the right thing putting up bird feeders. I hope it is the right thing. I rationalize that the animals are still fending for themselves from when the feeders are empty in the late afternoon until I fill them again around 7:30 in the morning.
If I am ever able to do so, I will purchase the wooded lots beside us and behind us to preserve a bit of animal habitat.
When considering whether or not to feed wild animals, I believe we must follow the laws, and then let conscience be our guide.
Visit Joanna’s beautiful and informative website, naturetails.blog
💚
Raccoons are mostly nocturnal, but nursing females also feed during the day in order to provide their babies adequate milk. My daughter, Katey Batavia, took these photos of Mama Raccoon eating peanuts under our bird feeder in broad daylight.
Although raccoons are delightful to watch, we don’t seek to feed raccoons; they can carry rabies and have an annoying habit of raiding garbage cans and scattering garbage. Our garbage cans are secured with bungee cords.
But how can you begrudge a hungry mama and her babies a few peanuts under the bird feeder?
Photo by Marco Forno from Unsplash.
When I was five,
I looked up at the sky,
and my favorite color was blue.
When I was fifteen,
I wandered woodland ways,
and my favorite color was green.
When I was thirty-five,
I paused to smell the roses,
and my favorite color was red.
When I was sixty-five,
I swam in the sea,
and my favorite color was aquamarine.
Now I am seventy-five.
I look up at the sky,
and a rainbow paints the colors of my life.
Copyright© 2024 by Cheryl Batavia
I have been on an extended break due to health issues. This poem was written in early August to mark my 75th birthday. I wanted to share my birthday poem on WordPress at that time, but I knew I still wasn’t quite up to blogging.
When I went to my cardiologist, I was told that I was healthy and didn’t need to go through routine tests this year. I had experienced an extremely mild heart attack 18 years earlier and had years of good test results after that. I had no reason to suspect that anything much was wrong with my heart.
Ten days later, after several days of horrible “indigestion,” I ended up in the emergency room with a massive heart attack. On August 26, I had quintuple heart bypass surgery. I had spent twelve days in the hospital.
Women have different heart attack symptoms from men and often experience heart attacks as “indigestion.” Unfortunately, that can delay going to the emergency room, allowing the problems to get worse. That was my experience. It is practically impossible to distinguish heart attack symptoms from indigestion. Even the emergency room once misdiagnosed me with indigestion after 3 hours of monitoring and intensive tests. We must never be embarrassed to go to the emergency room with chest pain, even if it turns out to be just indigestion!
Robert and I both have multiple health challenges, and we look out for each other, but this time, we were both quite ill at the same time. Ill as Robert was, he made me a salad the day I came home from the hospital. Thank you, Robert!
My two wonderful daughters came from their home in Dallas for a week and took excellent care of me. I did the walking I was supposed to do, and for a while, my recovery was going well. The typical recovery time from open heart surgery is about eight weeks and is very intensive.
After a couple of months though, I started feeling ill and ended up in the emergency room again. Two of the five grafts in my heart were 100% blocked, and I had to have them stented. I was in the hospital for four days this time and slept in a reclining chair because I was unable to lie down without chest pain until after the angioplasty.
I felt very tired and weak for several weeks after that, but my energy has begun to return. Some days are better than others. I am building up my walking distance again. Today was a warm, sunny day, and I walked outside for thirty minutes.
Even though I am not quite up to speed yet, I miss my blogging friends terribly. I may not be able to post often or read posts and comment as much as I would like. Please be patient with me, and know that you mean a great deal to me.
Thank you to those who inquired about my health while I was on break and those who wished me well.
Soon I will report on some ongoing projects I have been working on.
A belated Happy New Year! May 2025 bring you and your family good health, happiness, and success! ❤️
Maybe our male cardinal is feeding sunflower seeds to his mate as she sits on a new nest somewhere nearby. Photo by Aaron Ducette from Unsplash.
Cool early morning.
Flowers bloom in ruined woods,
two bunnies munch grass.
The cardinals sing again…
All is well, and life goes on!
Copyright© 2024 by Cheryl Batavia
We often see the male cardinal visiting the homemade feeder at the side of the house. He seems to have developed an addiction to black oil sunflower seeds. I haven’t seen the female for a while. She may be sitting on a new nest. I hear a lot of singing these days!
Comcast is making good progress on installing the new internet cable system throughout our area. Maybe internet service will improve soon!
My projects are progressing well, and I’ll share more on that when the time comes, but all the hard work and the headaches are taking a toll. Ongoing physical therapy is quite painful and leaves me exhausted. I am not seeing benefits yet. The headaches continue. Computer time is contributing to the stiff muscles in my neck, back, and shoulders which seem to be causing the headaches. My physical therapist has found some abnormalities in my posture. I am leaning to the left (literally), and she thinks I may have a curvature in my spine. I think she will recommend some imaging to my neurologist. Since migraine remedies didn’t work, it is probable that the headaches are not migraines. Computer time is also taking a toll on my eyes.
It seems I have no other choice than to decrease computer time, so I am going to take a break. I will miss all of my blogging friends very much, but I hope to be back soon, stronger and with good news. Happy spring everyone! 🩷
Photo by Joel Henry from Unsplash
Photo by SGR from Unsplash
Photo by Maurito Nixon from Unsplash
Photo by Maurits Bausenhart
Photo by Ian Dooley from Unsplash
Blessings…
Celestial,
Earthly, Oceanic,
Terrestrial, and Personal…
Blessings!
Copyright© 2924 by Cheryl Batavia
May nature’s blessings fill our hearts with joy.
May we live in harmony with nature.
May we cherish and preserve nature’s gifts.
Yesterday, I heard a loud commotion outside the window. I arrived just in time to see, silhouetted against the sunny sky, screaming birds pursuing slightly larger birds as they rose high in the sky. Then I noticed the mangled nest!
Sadly, I had witnessed a similar scenario before. A dozen years ago, I saw two angry mockingbirds repeatedly attacking a much larger osprey who was carrying their chick to its nest on a pole high above the parking lot. It was a hopeless situation for the mockingbirds, but they continued to attack.
Though I didn’t get a clear view of the birds yesterday, I am pretty sure the nest raider was a blue jay, known for preying on cardinal chicks.
Soon all was quiet. I saw the male cardinal pausing at the edge of the woods, silent now, and looking back toward the ruined nest as if to say goodbye. Cardinal family, you are in my thoughts. I share your sorrow, and I will always remember being privileged to witness your loving family life for an all-too-brief period.
I was too distraught to write about these devastating events yesterday, but this morning, it occurred to me that, even among humans, this is nature’s way. Many human children are victims of accidents, cruel diseases, famines, and wars not of their making. Many children die too soon. Today, I grieve for all the lost children, both animal and human.
Joys and sorrows shared.
Births and deaths both nature’s way;
we mourn our losses.
Love makes us vulnerable…
both animals and humans.
Photo by Onur Binay from Unsplash.
So cool, so clear, so deep your streams of thought,
unsullied reason flowing through your mind.
So warm, so pure, so true your heart is wrought,
like tender sunshine, glowing soft and kind.
Between us, conversation ebbs and flows,
engaging both enlightened mind and heart.
So like the sun is love, the warm heart knows
thoughts come from cooling springs where rivers start.
While you and I may differ on some points,
the heart does not demand that minds agree.
Our discourse always blesses and anoints.
Our hearts remain conjoined; our minds are free.
Long may our hearts pulsate in synchrony,
between us cool streams flow unceasingly!
Copyright© 2024 by Cheryl Batavia
This poem was written for Robert for Valentine’s Day and published in New Lyricist magazine, Issue 01, EIF Publishing, Ingrid Wilson.
Photo by Patrice Bouchard from Unslpash
The Palm Palace is a busy place this week. The Queen’s weeks of keeping the eggs warm are over; the eggs hatched on Sunday. The King has appeared, feeding insects to the tiny hatchlings. More news to come about the Cardinal Royal family.
Photo of male cardinal by Patrice Boucher from Unsplash
Photo of female cardinal by Joshua Cotten from Unsplash
Three small eggs,
pale blue flecked with brown
in a nest
made with love,
so exquisitely woven,
softly lined with grass.
Like a queen
in your palm palace,
self-assured
on your throne,
faithful cardinal mother
keeping your eggs warm.
We watched you
weaving your fine nest,
discovered
your blue eggs.
Pretty Mama, we share your
anticipation!
Very soon
your handsome husband
will help you
feed hatchlings…
King and Queen in your green realm,
reigning together.
We will watch
as hatchlings become
fledgelings, sprout
new feathers…
wobbly, but growing stronger,
flapping tiny wings.
Sometime soon,
comes the day they fly.
Under the
watchful eyes
of their parents, they’ll practice.
Soon, they’ll fly away!
We will watch
flapping tiny wings,
self-assured.
Someday soon,
King and Queen in your green realm…
Soon, they’ll fly away!
The cardinals’ nest, the “Palm Palace” is located among the fronds in the back of the tree on the left. We have a clear view of the nest from the window.
Copyright© 2024 by Cheryl Batavia
Northern cardinals live in North America. They are the predominate bird in our neighborhood. A pair of cardinals have a nest in our little palm tree that is clearly visible from our window. The mother bird is sitting on three eggs.
From my research, I learned that they raise two families a year. I think this is the second nest. We have not seen the father yet. He is probably at the first nest feeding the hatchlings while his wife is sitting on eggs in the second nest. When the eggs hatch, he should be here to help feed the hatchlings their diet of insects.
Robert and I made a feeder, hung it on a shepherd’s crook, and filled it with black oil sunflower seeds, supposedly the favorite treat of cardinals. We also put out water on a stand. So far, there is no evidence that the birds are using it. Thank you, Joanna of naturetails, for your advice on providing both food and water.
I meant to post this before Easter, but WordPress problems have slowed me down. Anyway, I hope everyone had a happy Easter and a lovely weekend! I am getting the computer problems worked out, but I still may not be able to “like” for a while. I appreciate your patience.
In October, from Russia, Katey and Joe,
came to Florida twenty-five years ago.
Friends and relatives sent gifts of welcome.
Hanukkah and Christmas gifts filled our home!
That January, when Katey turned five,
we agreed that a book was the best gift to give.
On Katey’s birthday, when Papa came home,
the birthday plans all came undone!
When Papa came in, Katey was overjoyed.
Between Papa’s feet was a Barney toy.
From the wheelchair, Barney saw his new place.
A gigantic grin spread over Papa’s face.
Katey kissed Barney’s purple cheek,
and the talking dinosaur began to speak.
In his goofy voice, Barney said, “I love you.”
It was unmistakable, Katey loved him too!
We lost Papa six years later in January,
weeks before Katey’s eleventh birthday.
Barney lived with Katey for twenty-three years.
His demise last year left Katey in tears.
This year, I found on Amazon,
Katey’s Christmas present, a Barney clone!
Barney now lives in Texas, where he’ll say,
“I love you,” to Katey every day.
Recently, I recovered over a thousand photos and found these. They gave me a chuckle, and I hope you also enjoy the old photos.
Copyright© 2024 by Cheryl Batavia
My late husband, Drew, and I adopted Katey and Joe from Russia in October, 1995. We lived in Miami Beach, and Drew, AKA “Papa,” was a very devoted father until his death in January, 2003. Katey now lives near Dallas, Texas with her older sister Ellen, a cat, a dog, and two other roommates. The new Barney, the Purple Dinosaur, joined the household in 2o19.
Gulf Coast Poet 