A pretty little female Ruby-throated Hummingbird visits the flowers just outside my office window off and on all day. Hummingbirds are a favorite of many people. There are many reasons to admire Hummers, especially females. Why? Well, all Hummers are teensy- only about 3.5" from the tip of their long beak to their tail. But smallness doesn't mean they aren't mighty. They are darn quick- their wings beat 60 to 80 times per second during normal flight (up to 200 times per second during their courtship dive- yee haw!). They are also fantastic little fliers; they migrate up to 2,525 miles to get to their Central American overwintering grounds. They take good care of their young. Females make the nests and incubate the jellybean-sized for eggs all alone for almost three weeks and then feed the young in the nest all alone for another three weeks. After all this hard work, Hummingbirds don't get to live long, most don't live past one year- three years is a long life for a Hummingbird.
It occurred to me, since I have been thinking a lot lately about how busy I am all the time, that Mothers these days are a lot like female Hummers. Most of us go a mile a minute- we work all day, go home and feed the kids, do laundry, help with homework, try and find time to have some fun with them and then get them to bed. We get them up in the morning, pack lunches, make sure everybody is dressed, fed breakfast and get them to school. We put endless miles on the car carting kids from sports to piano to camps to school functions... yet sadly, even with all this activity, most of us Mothers aren't really small and we need more than 10 calories a day to survive. Some of us have even gained a few pounds with kids and hubbies around. Happily though, we normally get to live longer than a year or two. I guess Moms of today have it better than Hummers? I wouldn't mind slowing down a bit though, maybe being a bit more like, say, a Great-blue Heron sometimes?
This week at Tanglewood we have 11 "city" girls (aged 10-15) attending our Meg Lowman Camp. They are a great bunch with varied backgrounds and interests and boundless energy. They help me remember what nature can be like when you first encounter it. Sometimes it is downright scary. But after you learn how much there isn't to fear in nature, it is surprisingly interesting and you might even get closer to it than you've ever imagined.
I noticed this today when we were discussing Arthropods and brought out the Madagascar Kissing Cockroach- I mean Hissing Cockroach. Yes, like the ones they eat on Fear Factor, but we don't eat ours, apparently we kiss them. At first, there were a lot of screams and protestations of "EWW" and "GROSS". But after we had them out for a bit and offered to let the girls hold them, things got interesting. First some would say "NO WAY" but after a few brave souls held the crawly creatures, soon everyone was. There was even one young lady, who shall remain nameless, that KISSED the creepy little critter. She was proud of herself, but soon after went to the bathroom to clean her lips. I told her that kissing a boy was much more germy than kissing a Madagasgar Hissing Cockroach. I don't think I really convinced her, after all she is 15 and right at that boy-crazy stage. But for a little while at Tanglewood, she was at the bug-crazy stage. Hopefully her first time kissing a cockroach is something she will never forget; I know I won't. Thanks Tamara! :-)
After I read the front page today about the teens killing a mother duck, I was again reminded another reason why Tanglewood is important. Part of what we try and do is teach kids to respect life, ALL life. All living things have their "place" in the ecosystem and unnecessary killing is not only cruel but unintelligent. I often hear kids say "my Dad/Mom/Fill in the Blank kills snakes when they see them". I ask why and they have many answers, but most relate to fear. We fear what we don't understand. Snakes keep the rodent population down, some rodents carry disease. Snakes don't eat people. Some are venomous, but the venomous species we have in this area are very small in number and they are non-aggressive and won't go out of their way to stalk and attack a human. I can talk for a long time about the reasons people shouldn't kill snakes or spiders or other such "scary" animals for no apparent reason, but I know there will always be people glad to tell me horror stories to try and demonstrate why I am wrong. All I can do is smile and keep on teaching what I have learned from a lot of personal experience with wildlife; leave wildlife alone other than to enjoy it, and you will be just fine.
The hike was great. It gave me time to think. As I started out, I paused, wondering if I should go back to get my cell phone in case something happened. I decided against the cell phone, decided to risk it. Then I kind of laughed at myself. What did people do before cell phones? They just hiked. Then I got to thinking about modern conveniences and which ones were really necessary. Which ones could I give up? The TV? Sure, that would actually be easy, we don't watch much tv in my house. My car? (no, not my SUV, I don't have an SUV). That might be more difficult, especially because I live in Corning and work in Elmira. Although we do try to walk places as much as possible. Living in Corning makes that easier. My computer? That would be the most difficult for me. I rely on it, especially for work. Email is my preferred method of communication.
How about that cell phone? Could I give it up? For me the answer would be a resounding YES! I use mine a lot, but I find myself more and more looking back fondly to the days when no one had them. I have been noticing lately how cell phones make us more in touch yet somehow less close. I cringe when I see people sitting at the dinner table with their family, in a movie theater, or at sporting events supposedly watching their kids, or on a walk with the kids and the dog, with their cell phones attached to their ears. Seeing those instances makes me sad. Times when we used to be able to focus on the people that were PRESENT, right there with us, are now broken up by cell phone calls and text messaging. I have been guilty of one or two of those cell phone infractions in the past, but I have made a vow recently to be more sensitive to when I get on the phone and where I bring it. I don't need it most places. I do need to be there for my family, with my attention on what is really important. What could you give up and how do you think it would change your life for the better?
Some people eat. Some people escape in a book or a movie. Some people call a friend. I move. When I am having a particularly stressful day, or week or year, I prefer to move. No, not leave the state, but move my body. It is my therapy. I like to go to the gym or run or some combination of, whenever I can. If I don't get to, I just might get a bit crabby. When life is especially stressful, I hike. Today, I am going to hike. We have a trail, the Red Trail, that is longish and steepish and goes to a beautiful view near the bluffs. It will be just what I need. Fresh air helps. Hearing birds sing and watching deer run past me also helps. Watching the wind move the branches of the trees helps. Moving my feet and clearing my mind helps. I think nature is essential to the human condition, and when we don't stay in touch with nature, we lose touch with our souls. Listen to a brook babble and tell me I'm wrong.
I am the Director of Tanglewood Nature Center in Elmira, NY, I love my job the fabulous view out my office window and the people I work with. I have a great family- my firefighter husband, 3 kids, 2 stepkids, a pound puppy and 2 lizards. I am not a huge fan of cell phones and IMing. I think both are ruining our relationships with other people and our social skills. Kids don't need cell phones- not debatable with me so don't try.
