Canberra in winter: …silver linings

Kookaburras are tree kingfishers found in Australia and New Guinea

This young kookaburra is new to our garden this year. Looking through my photos, I realise that near the end of winter, almost every year, one or two juvenile Kookaburras arrive in our garden.

This young kookaburra is waiting patiently by the birdbath.

Kookaburras are often found in family groups around suburbs bordering Canberra’s nature reserves. In the evening and the morning, the kookaburras get together and give a loud cackle.

I can quite understand why early settlers were terrified by this cackle…it is a loud raucous sound. However, this call is enough to bring tears to my eyes when I’ve just returned home from overseas…nothing sings Australia like a Kookaburra call.

I have read that a Kookaburra in your garden is a good omen because they bring laughter to your home. Well, I’m not usually into omens, but this one sounds good doesn’t it?

All birds are welcome…and who would not be cheered by the colours of the King Parrot, another regular visitor in winter.

Resplendent in his plumage of scarlet, a shiny blue tail, and emerald green wings and back, the male King Parrot is the only parrot to have a red head..

King Parrots feed on fruits and seeds gathered from trees. They spend many happy hours eating seeds from our Japanese Maple. This tree is very close to the house, so we look out on these colourful birds almost every morning.

I’m enjoying the birds more than ever this winter, they are a constant in the garden, and full of life. On a very foggy morning, I noticed the buds are developing on the plum tree. …I’m looking forward to spring.

I have always enjoyed company, conversation and friendship, but it takes on a whole new meaning during a pandemic!

Canberra no longer has full lock down and we can have a gathering of six people, with social distancing of course.

Paul and I meet up with two other couples for soup on Friday, and we are lucky enough to be within walking distance to each other’s houses, so we can build in a walk before eating.

Our friend Maggie has a very cute cat who has slipped into her seat to join the party..

During the week two friends visited, each bringing some sweet smelling Daphne and spring flowers. A friendly gesture which means a great deal.

If Paul and I are in the front garden, nearby walkers will call out to greet us, and chat about flowers and gardens and weather. Did this always happen? Perhaps it is just more frequent since the pandemic. Friendly contact with friends and neighbours helps to lighten the never-ending stream of negative news broadcasts.

One of our daughters and family are living in Melbourne, and Victoria has gone back into Level 4 lock-down. Hopeful this will end before our daughter has baby number two in September.

Way back in January…remember those days? we took our granddaughter to a wildlife reserve. Here children can measure themselves against an Eastern Grey kangaroo, or a Wallaby, or the smallest, a Pademelon, and Joanie is measuring herself against the Pademelon…..she is probably a lot bigger now.

Pademelons are small marsupials of the genus Thulogale

In the meanwhile this is our view as we return from our walk….a far cry from those dreadful photos I posted in summer of the fires across the Brindabella Ranges. These mountains look their very best on a clear winter’s day.

I wish we were at the coast now.

I hope you are enjoying your season, where ever you are in the world. I’m taking the same attitude as the writer, Jane in her blog called https://theshadybaker.com/, where she says
”I am always looking for the joy in small things especially in winter.”

Many thanks for taking the time to visit my blog. I enjoy reading blog posts from around the world, another small but pleasurable part of the day.

Stay safe and sane!

Geraldine Mackey Copyright: All Rights Reserved.