Birds chirping around you is a beautiful realization that life is incredibly good. Let this sound be a gentle break in your routine. ~Hiral Nagda
I like birds. My mom liked birds. She loved feeding them and so do I. So I suppose it’s only natural that I enjoy putting a few birds in my stories. The three books pictured have special mentions of birds, but other of my stories do as well.
One of the birds I enjoy mentioning in my stories is the whippoorwill. I think this is because I always loved hearing the whippoorwill sing in the evening back when I lived in an old farmhouse where the windows were open in the spring and summer. I also remember going outside to listen. For some reason those whippoorwills didn’t follow me over to the new farm when we moved, but I never forgot the somehow yearning sound of the whippoorwill.
Maybe that was because of the Hank Williams song “I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry.” My mother was a big Hank Williams fan. The line I remember is about hearing that lonesome whippoorwill and that he sounded too blue to fly. I don’t know that I thought the bird sounded sad when I heard it, but there is something that pulls at your heart about its song. I know I had Jocie hearing the whippoorwill in my Heart of Hollyhill books. Jacci and Gabe talked about hearing whippoorwills as they went down the river on their showboat in In the Shadow of the River. And Piper in An Appalachian Summer loved hearing the whippoorwill when she got to the Appalachian Mountains to be a courier and help the midwife nurses.
My heart is like a singing bird. ~Christina Rossetti
Crows were the bird of choice in my book, When the Meadow Blooms. The idea of crows bringing someone treasures in thanks for being fed was one of the original sparks for the story. I wanted to come up with a little girl that had that happen for her. Sienna, my young sister, in the story was the perfect character for that since she loves all things nature. So, she made friends with a couple of crows who did bring her those gifts after she fed them corn. They were a big part of several important scenes in the story. Sienna did love her crows.
Bluebirds were the bird of choice in my story, The Song of Sourwood Mountain. Mira’s mother had passed down to her a ceramic bluebird figurine with the quote in the graphic below.
So, bluebirds have always been very special to Mira, and once she got to Sourwood Mountain, she had hopes of seeing and hearing bluebirds while trying to adjust to all the new things she faced in Sourwood. At the end of the story, Mira talks about seeing and hearing those bluebirds.
I did love hearing the papa bird sing his courtship song that gave promise of more bluebirds in Sourwood. (Mira)
I didn’t talk about the cardinal, but I’ve let a cardinal and a mockingbird have a few lines in the book I’m currently writing. No title yet, but it’s set back in the Appalachian Mountains where birds are all around.
I hope you’ve enjoyed me sharing some about my books the last few posts. The giveaway is still going on with the deadline to enter coming up on Saturday, March 1, 2025 at midnight EST. But you still have time to throw your name in my giveaway drawing hat to get an entry or another entry if you’ve responded to some of the other posts already. The prize is your choice of one my books. All you have to do is leave a comment on this post and you get that entry. You do have to be at least 18 years old to enter.
What is the bird you like most to see in your backyard or at the park or in the woods?
Comments 13
I have 3 feeders attached to my front window. I love eating breakfast and watching all the birds every morning. There’s cardinals, tufted titmouse, chickadees, woodpeckers, bluejays and several other small birds. Occasionally there’s large crows when I throw crackers or bread crumbs out…they’re nearly as big as chickens! I haven’t heard the whippoorwills this winter, so maybe they migrate? But my current favorite are the sparrows. There’s one that watches me through the window from the feeder. A few times, when I haven’t filled the feeder early enough, she’s actually pecked on the security camera and sang a song. She’s hilarious to watch.
Birds are so pretty and birdsong is the best way to start the day.
When my fathering law was sick and getting chemotherapy,our church made him a prayer blanket.Each knot that was on the blanket was prayed over by the person who tied the knot.It was full of cardinals. When we took it to him,we found out his favorite bird was the cardinal.How the Lord works in mysterious ways! Ever since then, my husband and I love cardinals and think of him every time we see one!
I love cardinals and woodpeckers, along with whippoorwills. I used to hear them all the time when I was visiting my aunts and uncles in NW GA. There’s a bird here in FL (I don’t know the name of it) that’s really little, and I usually think it’s a leaf on the ground until I see it hopping or flying. Super cute!
Listening to birds sing and go about their daily activities costs nothing yet gives such pleasure. The Lord has truly blessed us with birds.
When I lived in my house, I watched and waited for the beautiful rose-breasted grosbeaks to arrive from their southern winter homes. They sang a lovely warbling song, enjoyed the feeders and fluttered about in the foliage of the ancient lilac near my bedroom window where I would watch them in the silence. I loved seeing the striking rosy patch on the white chest underneath a black back and head. Seeing these amazing birds was a high point of the springtime.
My parents taught me to love birds and flowers. One of my favorites is the hummingbird. I’ve already put out my feeders and the scouts have checked on the feeders. 🙂 Have a blessed day!
Mourning doves, robins, chickadees, wrens, bluebirds, finches, an eastern phoebe, woodpeckers, hummingbirds (in season), and an occasional cardinal and bluejay gather at our feeders and birdbath. They scatter quickly when a hawk floats overhead.
There cheerful songs, chattering, and calls of warning bring music to our backyard.
Keeping the feeders full and clean keeps my husband busy! The delight the birds bring is worth the work.
I love to hear the Pileated Woodpecker with his comical cry, and I love to see the Gold Finch nibbling seeds from my Coneflowers, occasionally we see the beautiful Blue Birds.But the hummingbirds are the most interesting, so wonderfully created!
I love birds and feed them year round! I have 3 bird feeders hanging outside my kitchen window and enjoy watching them as I work in the kitchen. I don’t really have favorite bird, but the call of the mourning dove is my favorite bird sound. It’s so plaintive and beautiful. I hear it mostly in the spring and fall and never get tired of hearing it!
I like to see the woodpeckers in my yard picking the seed out of the feeders and off the ground.
This year Robins, cardinals, wrens, and so many more. Robins because it means Spring is on the way. My yard was full two days ago
I love all birds . I guess the one that thrills me most to see is any that I’ve never seen before except in pictures. Of course the first robin spotted in spring gives a thrill of hope. Warmer weather on the way. I’ve never heard a whippoorwill, or seen one for that matter.
There are two birds that I like to see. First are doves, they’re pretty plain, but they’re so calm. And second are hummingbirds, watching them scold each other never gets old.