Let There be Peace on Earth

and let it begin with my birdfeeder.

Two days ago new peace treaty was finally struck. It's not about to make a big difference on the world scene, but it's a rather nice development in this household. A couple of months ago, I broke down and bought a new feeder for the hummingbirds. It didn't take them long to notice it was there and it didn't take much longer than that for one in particular to stake the area out as his territory.

So far, so perfectly normal. The difference was quite surprising to me. For the dozen or so years I've been doing this I've had a lot of hummingbirds out there. Usually they quickly get accustomed to me and I have even felt the breeze from their wings as they've hovered around my hands when I go out to refresh the supply of nectar for them.

Not so with this bird. From the very first he decided that I was some kind of threat. He would buzz me, dive bomb me, hover a few inches in front of my face while making nasty chirping noises...yeah I know,nasty chirping noises? If you don't get it, it is clear that you don't know much about hummingbirds!

To say the least, I was more than a little irritated. After all, if it weren't for me, there wouldn't be a feeder and it wouldn't have any nectar in it even if it were there. But it seems that even hummingbirds can learn. Two days ago he actually flew up and calmly took his drink from the feeder, paying me no attention whatsoever. It seems that even birds can learn . Maybe there is some hope for humanity. Then again, maybe not.