Humminbird Resting

While having breakfast early on the deck this morning, I heard the welcome whir of a hummingbird nearby. It was very close, getting food from the planter of colorful petunias on the patio. It seemed tiny in comparison to the large trumpet shaped petunia blooms, as it busily zoomed from one flower to the next. Then, it flew up in to the tree by the pool next to the patio, and sat down.Its tiny needle like beak stuck out against the silhouette of the tree. The hummingbird looked so small, so vulnerable. Life in the country can be very solitary, and there are times the aloneness  can get to you. Watching the tiny bird up in the tree made me realize how comfortable it was in its solitude. Most animals have a great tolerance for the necessity of being alone . I do not know if humans have lost that part of our instinct that is comfortable with the necessity to be alone at times, but it often becomes an existential concern for us, the why and how of solitude. This little hummingbird made me feel better about my solitary breakfast, and I got a kick out of seeing it resting, so very small in that big tree. Our old kitty Sneakers, who is at least 12, has an enormous capacity for enjoying solitude, in conjunction with her very gregarious personality. It makes for a very happy cat, she can't lose , either way. Tigger on the other hand, is a very private cat, who prefers being alone, or the company or attention of just one person.Our Bouvier-Black Labrador Yara, is definitely happier when she is around us, and is not very keen on being alone. My son and I are like Sneakers, while my husband is definitely a Tigger. The little hummingbird flew away a few minutes later, but it left me with a smile on my face and a renewed appreciation for my solitary breakfast time.