June 2, 2007, Why Would I want to Live Anywhere but Here?

It is the sort of day that makes you forget January. The sort of day where lake effect snow is just a distant memory. You forget what it is like to get several feet of snow in a few hours.

The weather forecast was very non specific so it could not be wrong. The morning is clear and sunny and the temperature perfect. High 70’s low 80’s. I woke up to an Indigo Bunny singing in the back yard. Paired notes: Cha cha che che sue sue see see chit chit . Around the yard the flowers are still spectacular. The Peonies are spectacular deep magenta. As far as I can tel they are the only cultivar in bloom at the moment. White Canada Anemones, pale blue Wild Hyacinth, Yellow Iris. Purple columbine linger, and a small 5 petal variegated pink flower, I think it is a Storksbill, is everywhere

Because today is Saturday I can walk in the early morning. I have the woods and summit to myself. There are Blueit Damselflies. I don’t know what species. I find them everywhere. Not in large numbers but enough to be noticed in the deep woods and along the ledges.

On the summit few birds of note. The expected species. Hooded Warbler, Wood Thrush, Eastern Wood Pewee, Scarlet Tanager. The Barred Owl calls from somewhere to the west, and a Red-shouldered Hawk calls from high over the trees. Visibility is low because it is hazy. I cannot see the lake but can see a ghostly image of the skyscrapers downtown illuminated by the morning sun.

Back home my first Cedar Waxwings of the year. Finally! The Indigo Bunny is still in the yard. Juncos are singing. The females are on their nests but the males come up from under the vegetation to sing and to visit the feeders. Chipmunks chitter as they cross the patio. A Deer Fly lands on me and wants to bite. I kill it. An ant about 8 mm long, finds it quickly. It takes a minute or so, but once it gets a good grip the ant drags the much bigger fly 10 feet across the patio, and up the six inch vertical wall of the curb into the Anemones. I realize the strength of ants is more a matter of scale than anything else. Still it was interesting the ant wanted the fly.

As the day progresses it gets progressively cloudy. Cumulus clouds building as the afternoon progresses. By late afternoon it is overcast. Still it is beautiful.

I don’t know if it is familiarity but I find this place more beautiful than any other. There are places that have their charms, More sunny days to be sure. Still I cannot think of anywhere that has the consistent natural beauty of my home. If I lived just a few miles away, in Mentor perhaps, I would not feel this way. But I don’t. How could I live anywhere else?