YONAH•Mourning Dove•Journal

FEBRUARY 2021

Monday 01 February:
First day of February, usually the month when Winter makes up for any “lost time” of cold... bitter cold, and snow and ice. We, Yonah and I, woke to a temperature of -19°... with a “chill” of -24° and another grey day in all. But curtains got opened and light was on and we struck another day of each-other's company (and I couldn't be any happier of a morning like this, with such magnificent company).
During the day, I worked in her room, for the most part, and we had MULTIPLE “chats”! Literally... “chatting”; she coo'ed, I coo'ed, she responded, I replied! (Honestly, I have NO idea what we were discussing, but there were very few moments of silence that lasted any notable length of time. And the longer it went on, the more I smiled, to the point where my face actually grew sore from all the smiling. If ONLY I had ANY idea what she was saying. It's worse than being able to pull a word or two from here and there... I have NO idea, but, what-ever it was, we ran the subject to silence... eventually.)
And as we conversed, a thought came to mind:
How my heart still aches and my stomach churns, remembering my last visit to “PetSmart”, in Plattsburgh, when that woman-customer got that parakeet, and the young sales-clerk reached into the cage and snatched one... AND WHEN HE REMOVED IT, FROM A PAIR THAT HAD BEEN CHIRPING DELIGHTFULLY, IT WAS OBVIOUS THAT THE REMAINING PARAKEET NOTICED, WAS AWARE OF THE REMOVAL OF ITS LITTLE MATE!!! THE CHIRPING STOPPED AND THE LITTLE ONE STOOD, EVER-SO STILL, ON THE PERCH, STARING AT THE EMPTY SPACE BESIDE HIM/HER! IT WAS PHYSICALLY SICKENING! And to think that “people” get all in a frenzy at the very notion of separating children from families, or couples of any sort for any reason! WHAT? WHAT in the name of ALL things thought “holy and UN-holy”??? WHAT?!?!?!? JUST WHAT?!?!?!? AND TO MAKE IT WORSE, NEITHER THE CLERK NOR THE CUSTOMER APPEARED TO NOTICE... OR WORSE YET, IF THEY DID NOTICE, THEY DIDN'T CARE! Even remembering the event still makes me physically sick, and angry. I KNOW there are ways of providing companions for single little ones who have lost theirs with-out breaking established friends. I KNOW it's possible! But, well, when I think of the so-called “curses” of humans, I have to say that the species-human deserves them. “Higher-evolved”? I have other descriptives... I'll refrain. They're really quite, what would be called “vulgar”... and well-deserved.
In other news... I'd left some broccoli in for her to pick at, but it got warm in the room and OO! What an odour! So... what started as a “tidying sweep” ended as a complete house-keeping.
“Bad news”: As I was cleaning, I happened to notice... the “west” window of her double-window has been open, at the top! 4 to 4cm! It's a REALLY low-quality window, most likely an “off”, just slapped up. And too, in fairness, this old house is almost constantly shifting with change of season, weather and mood so the window might have fit properly at some point but it isn't now, obviously. I had closed it at the beginning of the cold season, and taped it across the top and down the sides but that obviously wasn't enough. THANKFULLY, I've had the radiator on in the room all through the colder weather we've been having! Those windows are where Yonah's house is located! The cold drafts coming in through the night! But, the radiator has been excellent at maintaining warmth in spite of it. Sure, a bit of “coolness” is nothing when compared to what's out there in the open, and she's been “on the mend” for 4 months now. But there's no real reason she need be cold. (I'm probably over-caring... if that's at all possible, but so be it, if so.) So I got busy making sure that the window is closed and stays closed. The worst part of it today? I had to, literally, “move house”. Poor Yonah! In her little house, being moved here, there, round the room! BUT... she handled it as if it were all a matter of “normal”... just “watching” my every move, as if fascinated (or supervising).
By evening, as the sun set and the world grew darker, all was settling quite well, Yonah got evening “tuck-in”, fresh food and water for the over-night, the “light block” went up and we both calmed, for another Winter's night of sleep. But for me, it was particularly wonderful, thinking of all the talking we'd done during the day and wondering, as I do: will she remember me, my voice? And if so, will she, when out there again, will she remember me as a “friend” or “that horrible human who put me in a cage”? I wonder... No matter... I LOVE her and always will.

Tuesday 02 February:
Just another “typical”, chilly, grey day in the neighbourhood today. Yonah and I had a few moments of “together time”, but, for the most part, she “lounged”. Well, it is Winter, after all. 'tis the season for “lounging”. And, after all, food and water are so readily-available. No need to “go a-foraging”. I might have to do something about that though. I don't want her to become accustomed to “necessities” being “at wing”, as it were. It won't be like that much longer. Yes, admittedly, she's being “spoiled”. I'm interfering with “the natural order”, so it's imperative that I “watch” that. (It's just so easy though!)
My “concern” came this evening... curtains closed, lights out, all settled for the night and she started coo'ing! Repeatedly! It breaks my heart when she does that at night, in the dark! I can't help but think that she's calling to find somebody else, another dove, some-where close by! So I went in to “talk” with her and I put my hand up against her house and she came over and pecked at it, as if it were a “predatory” sort of presence. I wonder if she just couldn't see it clearly in the dark and just “sensed” some kind of attack or am I still, in some manner, an actual “predator” in her mind? I took my hand away and spoke, very softly, just telling her than I'm not here to cause her any harm, that she's safe here and that one of these days, when all of this cold is past and she won't ever have to fend against it, she'll be back... with her flock, flying around all day, through the trees, and snuggling together at day's end. (I know... she doesn't understand, but maybe the softness and tone of voice is assuring in some way.) It does seem to help though. She calmed down and when, just before I went to bed, I looked in and she was on her perch, looking all comfy.
One thing that I've come to see is that, when the neighbours next-door get to their “thumping about” in the evening, she becomes “vocal”. So I wonder if it disturbs her in some way. There really is no excuse for making such noises, especially at night. But then again... “people” aren't, as a rule, the most intelligent, considerate sorts. Thankfully, the annoyance doesn't last long and it isn't terribly loud. Still... (I'm just intolerant... admittedly and unashamedly, of people. And having this little mourning dove as my life, my intolerance increases... in favour of the little one here, who is my “bestest friend”.) (I'm becoming “bird people”!)

Wednesday 03 February:
Ah, this morning, the little ones out-side were served their usual breakfast and I noticed THREE MOURNING DOVES, ONE OF WHOM IS QUITE “TERRITORIAL” AND “AGGRESSIVE”! A male, I suspect, because of size, compared to the others. With the odd number, 3, my mind wanders and I wonder if one of them is Yonah's mate. It would be SO GRAND if I could bring them ALL in for the Winter... serve meals, and they'd all be together until the warm weather comes back and they could all, together, head back out! (I need to stop reading “those” stories. In some ways, I suppose I've just never grown up, but it's a cute thought... and my intentions are purely the best.)
Noticeably, I'd grated some carrots to add to the food I put out for them, mixed with the usual “Wild Songbird” seeds and the seeds vanish... but the carrot remains. I suspect there's something “wrong” with/about those carrots, and they were bought at the market and thoroughly cleaned under constantly-running cool and cold water. WELL! If the out-doors folk won't eat them, we won't have any more of THAT in the house. Not good for them? Not good for Yonah nor for me!
During the day, Yonah relaxed to her “Baroque/Classical” play-list, coo'ing with/to her “favourites”. She does that, at certain points, during certain pieces of music. I'm going to have to make notes of what evokes a “sing-along”. It's mostly the Baroque music (with the exception, of course, of “Dvorak”... “Song To The Moon” which is obviously and by far, her most favourite because it gets her “coo'ing” right along through most of it. Talk about a “Classy Lady”! Baroque music! Woo-HOO-hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo... as a mourning dove might say.
A little something else I noticed today: When the “Full Spectrum” light is on, she doesn't seem to mind if my face gets close to her. She STARES at me, face-on. BUT... hands are OUT! Once the hands come into view, she raises one wing, defencively. And I make certain to keep talking when I bring my face to her, so that it doesn't appear to be a predator, “sizing her up”. I've read that doves DO recognise faces. Apparently, Yonah has come to recognise mine! HEY! And she doesn't panic! HEY HEY! Now, if she recognises MY face as being “friend” and can remember that other faces aren't... that would be wonderful! (And I “dream on”.)
And too, I find that she's appears more relaxed when, after I put the light out and she's “in for the night”, I close the door to her room. Of course, I leave it open a bit, for air circulation and so that I can hear if she starts “flying” about, as if startled or anxious, of if she starts coo'ing. But it's closed just enough to block the light from the rest of the house and to, at least, muffle the sounds of me moving about. More of that “live and learn”. I'm really fortunate in that I can give her her own room.

Thursday 04 February:
A Winter day that started with grey skies, but managed to “break” the “freezing mark” and some of the snow began to melt. Ah, but this is only the start of February. No sense in becoming any too “encouraged”. And as the “day-light” began to brighten the house, came the “call” to open the curtains and let the day in. I swear, sometimes it really does sound like “Hey! Hello? Curtains? It's morning here!” So of course, I go, immediately, with a huge smile on my face, apologising for the delay, and curtains get open!
Eventually, the grey cleared and the sun POURED in through the window and Yonah grabbed as much of it as she possibly could, laying, lounging, basking. And she had her usual “Baroque/Classical” music playing... and she coo'ed along as Luciano Pavarotti sang “Panis Angelicus”! She's got another “fave”! (I wonder what Pavarotti would think were he to know.)
We got another house-keeping done today too. Not a “thorough” with taking it all apart, but kitchen roll changed, waters freshened... everything clean, neat and tidy.
I can't help but notice that Yonah seems to be so petit, almost tiny. I KNOW she's eating and drinking properly (I've SEEN it). And “poop” is always “normal” and “healthy”. I suppose I just expected that, with all the food available, she'd “plump”. NOT that I want her to be “fat”. (There are “instructions” on-line that recommend “timed” and “portion-controlled” “feedings”. I've put at least enough food in to be available through a day and longer, and Yonah eats when and as much as she wants... much as a cat would, as opposed to a dog that might tend to eat until there's nothing left.) Her feathers, for the most part, look quite nice, healthy, great colour. Her eyes and beak are clear and clean. I guess maybe she's “keeping her figure for Spring”. I'll keep a careful watch though.
But all the while, though I DO Love this little one so, how I WISH the weather would be so that she could be back “out there” and there'd be NO threat of frost-bite or freezing to death in the night... or... that I could KNOW, for certain, that she'd find a flock that would care for and about her. It's really a matter of “patience”... and for her, mine is boundless!
Bottom line: I don't regret having brought her in to recover and I don't resent, even in the least, being able to provide a safe, warm place for her as the world out-side her windows continues to freeze. She's my “Life” as well as my Love and the experience of these weeks has no comparison, where JOY is concerned.

Friday 05 February:
Light snow today... but even “light” is, well, still Winter.
But Yonah was awake and about when I got in to open her curtains for a new day. And her baroque music went on and, after fresh food and water and a “tidying” from the night before (or, as it actually is: “poop check” because that's what I do EVERY day, with-out fail, to make sure she's eating AND digesting properly), WE were ready to take-on another day!
And it was, for the most part, another SUPER-STUPENDOUS day. There was another “crash” from next door this evening, and when I heard it, I IMMEDIATELY went in to check on Yonah. Not that I thought the crash came from her room, but I wanted to make sure that it hadn't frightened her. Yes, it obviously had because she was fluffing her little body as I got in to her. My insides KNOT because of this and because there's just no talking to ignorant people. And now, how I yearn to see this little one flying freely out and away from here. And if she remembers any of these traumas, I don't suppose I should think in terms of her staying around. (I know that if I had the ability to simply get up and out of here, I wouldn't look back, let alone come back.) People... honestly! I've always said: If you don't know how to behave properly and respectfully amongst others, get yourself a little shack in the middle of nothing and just go away! One “crash” is an accident. The second one is carelessness. Any more is just plain inconsiderate and a psycho-social abnormality.
OK! OTHER than that... back to the rest of the day...
After morning “tidy”, I had to make a run to market (something I truly don't like any more of late, for several reasons, but the most important being, I do NOT like leaving Yonah alone, with-out company... I miss her terribly when I'm away), and when I got back to the house, maybe 30 minutes later, I, of course, went directly to see her to say I'd returned...SHE PACES, almost as if she's excited to see me, as if she knows that I was out and I returned! It's not a “fearful” pacing. She doesn't run for the opposite side of her house or cower into a corner. She sees me, and she just paces... across the front of her little place! So, I said “I'm back.” and went to put the shopping up.. and immediately went back to chat with her. WELL, AS I CHATTED WITH HER... SHE ATE! AS I SPOKE, SHE ATE! SHE'S COMFORTABLE ENOUGH WITH ME NOW TO EAT WHILE I'M RIGHT THERE! Great for me! Not so great for her... She's going to have to drop that habit “back home”. But for now, I am SO HONOURED!
This is all more difficult than I believe I can express because I'm never “certain” that what I'm doing is right, proper, correct for her. I run through MANY web-sites for each and every question that comes to mind and I don't just “take my first impulse” with/for anything. And all I can do is HOPE, with full heart, that I'm doing the bet for her, these months that we're together AND that she'll take flight back to a wonderful, appreciative flock in perfect health and condition. AND... that she'll have little ones and they'll ALL live a full and wonderful life.
Now, if Nature would co-operate, that would be nice too. But... “time” and “season”... and I surely don't mind, AT ALL, giving ALL that I have, ALL that I humanly can, for what-ever length of time it takes until she can get back out there!
So, other than the “incident next-door”, the rest of the day was a JOY and the crash was a one-time ordeal. As the evening rolled into the night, Yonah and I both, got settled-in (and I thanked who/what-ever brought us together... though I don't appreciate the cause, I AM honoured to be the one who brought her in, out of the rain and cold and out of the claws and jaws of what-ever could have inflicted... well, I don't even want to mention it). She's here, she's warm, she's nourished, she protected, safe, and SO LOVED! THAT is what matters.

Saturday 06 February:
We, Yonah and I, had a very “subdued” Saturday today, staying in, mostly “lounging”... both of us. I “dropped-in” during the day, to have our “chats” and she coo'ed to her combination of Baroque music and recordings of other mourning doves. Of course, we did light “Happy House-Keeping” and she supervised.
It was another rather cold and damp day and she got fresh food and water, and the “flocks” out-side got their usual: when I put fresh food in for Yonah, I put what she doesn't eat, out for the others. One thing for certain, they're getting quiet a varied and healthy diet these days. it's important to me to know that Yonah's food is plentiful and fresh every day and there's nothing “wrong” with what she doesn't eat, I just prefer that, considering her injuries and this “odd” environment that she's in now, she gets the best proper nutrition. (And it does my heart a bit more good being able to supply the little ones out there with some extra vitamins and minerals that they might not get other-wise.)
So when the day drew to night, water was changed and fresh, Yonah's house was made “tidy” and clean. Curtains got closed. The “card-board” went up on to the window. Her radiator was set to keep ALL chills away. Lights out. And shortly there-after, she was cozy and the day was complete.
It truly is a delight to know that she's here... and I keep hoping that, some-how, she “understands” why I keep her in here and that she NEVER feels “trapped”, confined, caged. She's SO VERY MUCH LOVED! (And I am so VERY MUCH HUMBLED... and HONOURED.)

Sunday 07 February:
Today's “Yonah Agenda” was trying to find “grit” for her. Doves use/need it to help digesting their food, as it “grinds” the seeds they swallow whole. In their natural environment, they swallow bits of sand and small gravel and, although Yonah's got some rather nice sand, the “grit” for birds supplies needed calcium in ground oyster shells, and it's also got some extra vitamins that are important as well. It isn't costly either. But for some odd reason, un-specified, on about 5 different web-sites, it's “Out Of Stock”. The earliest I see it coming available is the 17th! “Grit”? Comprised, primarily, of “granite” with oyster shells, I have to wonder: Has there been a “rush” on it? And if so, why? (Then again, “shopping” for just about anything these days has been night-marish. I can almost understand a shortage of tinned cat and dog foods. Cat food instead of tuna... for salads and sandwiches, and dog food as a paté or spread... it's been done before and I shouldn't doubt it's being done again, even now. But “granite grit”? Instead of bacon bits? Nah...)
And I have my heart set on getting a small “pump”, the likes of which are used in these new “water features”, little “fountains” in gardens and “parlours” (living-rooms). It would be nice to keep the water in Yonah's little “pool” circulating, maybe make a little “splash”, more like a “moving stream” or brook than a simple dish of water. I've seen a couple that are very reasonably priced and look to be a perfect item but... once again... “Out of Stock”.
All this on-line, and from the smaller shops to the larger “box stores”. I don't understand it. And right now, “time” is important. I want Yonah to be comfortable for the weeks she'll be here before she returns to her “natural home environment”. Oh well... I'll just keep looking. There's BOUND to be SOMEWHERE!
Meanwhile, the day was chilled at -10°, but Yonah and I passed the day, often together, when I made sure to be with her, chatting, as we do, trying to be good company, as I do. And we (yes, both of us) listened to a new “mix” of music... “Folk” (mostly the 60s and 70s folk) and Baroque. I try to keep the “sounds” here, varied. My next goal: recordings of all sorts of birds, not just mourning doves, to get closer to what a day would sound like in the local woods. Her room is noticeably warmer than the rest of the house and I wouldn't have it any other way. She's in her own “climate” with her own radiator there.
Sure, a bit of “cool” doesn't harm, but, I can't see any reason why she needs to “fluff” against any chills. When she gets back out, she'll have more than enough of that. Right now, the focus is on comfort, healing, no-stress. (5-Star accommodations... indeed!)
And she DOES seem to enjoy our time together. In this relatively short period of time, she's a LOT calmer when I'm in the room AND when I get close to her. It does my heart so much good because I really don't expect her to become “bonded” or “too friendly”. I'm not even “working toward” that because I don't want her to “attach” to people in any way. But I CERTAINLY don't want her living in constant fear. So when we “get together”, soft talk and slow gestures, in good light so she can see me... I don't “know” that it does much for her, but I have to admit, it's doing great wonders for my mood, attitude and general well-being. The better she gets, the better I feel. These are “the weeks of awe” for me... quite honestly and literally, “awe”
Now, this evening, as I was in the kitchen, after settling Yonah in for the night... her lights off, radiator on, door closed to keep her heat in, I was watching a bit of television when I heard her coo'ing. It's unusual for her to coo when she's been settled for the night, so I got up to stick my head into the room, not wanting to go in, in case she was sleeping. If I woke her, I didn't want to “surprise” her. And if she was sleeping and coo'ing in her sleep, I wonder: ws she dreaming? Cats and dogs are known to dream. I see no reason why birds can't. And I wonder: if she IS dreaming... is it heart-ache? Missing her other half? Lately, there are 5 doves who come to eat in the back yard. It breaks my heart to think her “other” is the 5th, the “extra”. And then there's the one who tends to come alone, and when the others arrive, that one is rather aggressive, almost “wanting” to be alone. The others leave and s/he stays, not always eating, but almost as it “waiting” or looking. If it IS Yonah's “other”, I hope he'll stay until the weather gets good enough for her to get out of here and back to him, back together. I WANT HER TO BE FREE AGAIN! I'll be empty when she's not here, but I can't keep her fro much longer. She NEEDS to be free! And this coo'ing... at night... well...
Then I look at the forecast... more COLD coming toward the end of this week... “Patience”... Yonah and I... we need patience... and tenacity... I'm sure this isn't any easier for her.
BUT... coo'ing, dreaming... she's warm... and protected... and I do suppose that's important.

Monday 08 February:
OK! Today I FINALLY managed to find that “grit” for Yonah! The “shipping” charge was more than the grit, but at least it ought to be here by Thursday. AND, in my searching, I discovered a “Moulting” supplement as well. More research into that, reading several “reviews” on several different web-site/forums and it looks to be something quite worth adding to Yonah's diet. And she is, indeed, dropping feathers (especially tail feathers). They're being replaced. It's not that she's “losing” them and going bald. But again, if this will give her the nutrition she needs, I'm MORE than happy to get it and, at least, give it a try! Oh! AND... so I see that “Niger” seeds are a particular favourite of a great many birds and THEY supply quite a bit of nutrition so... I threw that in as well. AND ALL to be here by Thursday! One happy little bird to follow. On HEALTHY little bird... I hope.(All of this is SUCH an education for me. But SO VERY enjoyed, as long as this little one is happy and healthy.)
Where “feathers” are concerned, Yonah has an “odd” feather on the injured wing. It obviously annoys her. It's completely black in colour, rather narrow, and it “drops” lower than the actual contour of the wing. She often picks at it. More “research” and there's a lot of “Pull it but be careful” comments on various forums. I DID find one fellow who has a parrot who has the same situation. This fellow posts a LOT of information, first-hand experience and HIS recommendation is to simply leave it alone. His parrot eventually loses the “odd” feather. Meanwhile, there are other who agree completely. So my thoughts go to Yonah's “bad leg” when she first arrived. It appeared completely “dead”, dangling from the bottom of her little body. And I was wondering if it shouldn't have been “removed”. THANK THE GODS I DIDN'T!!!!!!!!!! SO I'M LEAVING THIS FEATHER ALONE! IF it shows any signs of becoming infected or other-wise worse, I'll find somebody who knows best, knows what they're doing, and get more information and such. (Oh, and it's always on my mind... having gone to “bird people” for advice on that miserable October day, as Yonah laid on the floor, unable to walk or fly... “Put it in a shoe-box with some newspaper...” Indeed, indeed... NEVER again... from now on, it's DIG, DIG, SEARCH, SEARCH... for any, all and as much information from as many sources as exist for ANY and ALL matters!) And, maybe this “moulting” supplement will help. It's worth a try. The ingredients are all “food”, nothing “odd” or “concerning”. “Trial and error”... and a lot of “HOPE”.
On another note of another sort, a neighbour stopped by today, to chat, and ask how Yonah is doing. She wants me to call her when Yonah goes free. As if I'm going to make the event some kind of “side show”. Really? And then she suggested that, when Yonah is gone, I get a canary or parakeet or some sort of other bird. HONESTLY, MY HEART AND SOUL COULDN'T HANDLE IT! I'm STILL HORRIFIED and SICK, REPULSED when I remember that day in the “Pet Store” when I saw those two little ones separated! I tell you what, if I lived in a climate where they'd survive, I'd dedicate the rest of my life to “buying” these poor little ones JUST TO SET THEM FREE! Yes, I KNOW that they're born and raised “in captivity” and I've HEARD that they have no “natural survival instincts”... BUT I've ALSO learnt... VERY WELL, that that's a “human” construct, supposition. “Human”... the same species that claims “And God gave man dominion over all the earth”. Yeah... a “human” claimed that, wrote it, taught it to other humans... and, well, maybe it's my own personal bent but I've seen what humans have done to this “all the earth” over which they have “dominion”... They scream about separating THEIR off-spring, taking THEIR children from parents, and such... And then they SEE the obvious changes in the mood of little birds when they're taken from a friend, a mate, a chum... and cold-heartedly (or more like “heartlessly”) they just blow it away. No. I'm not supporting the cruelty! I didn't “go get” Yonah... She was here, injured, facing a possible slow death or being ripped to pieces. I took her in as protection... until such time when she's well enough to be off on her own again. Taking a poor little bird (or even a pair of birds) selfishly? Times like this when I, not a particular believer in a “place” called “Hell”, tend to hope that there IS a “Hell”... especially for “people” who torture the little ones... no matter the species.
OK... it just sets me on a binge. I didn't say all that to the “nicely neighbour”. I simply said that I'm “really not cut out for it... not really a 'bird people' and, at my age, it's not a good idea because I'd have to think about what would happen to the bird if I needed medical or... 'other'... services”. THAT put it to rest. And speaking of rest... the day went along and Yonah has GOOD FOOD AND TREATS COMING!!! WOO-HOO! And tomorrow, I'll toddle to market and get her more fresh broccoli, something I know she enjoys and is good for her.
She got nightly “tuck-in”, and snacks are readily available should she wake with an appetite... and she's got warmth and more important, protection against all predators... and, perhaps, most important above all else... LOVE... UNLIMITED LOVE!

Tuesday 09 February:
THIS morning, I “bounced” out of the bed, to the MAGNIFICENT CALLS of “Woo-HOO-hoo-hoo!”. Yonah was up, about and ready to take-on another day, and because she was happy, well, truth be told, she sets my day as well. Every day now, these days, I look SO forward to hearing that call. And when it comes, I can't help but break into an actual, sincere smile... on face and in heart.
AND, this morning, on the back walk, NINE GLORIOUS MORNING DOVES GATHERED FOR THE BREAKFAST I SET-OUT FOR THEM EACH DAY. NINE. When they “flock” in an “odd number, I can't but wonder if the missing one there isn't Yonah. In one respect, I'm relieved to know that she still has a place in the “old flock” and that they're still here and will be there when he's back out, they'll be waiting to welcome her back. It's a bit of a “comfort” to me to see them, to know that they're there... for her. And it takes the cold out these February mornings to see them all eating, and eating quite well, and knowing that what they're eating is nourishing, and a good quality. (I DO believe I'm becoming a “Bird People”... but... with an admitted bias... Mourning Doves... I suppose I HAVE become a “Mourning Dove People”... proudly and happily.)
There's one blue jay that comes round too, usually after the mourning doves leave. It seems to have some kind of “trouble” though, usually standing quite still, head turned almost round to the back. This morning, the little one was laying on its back, in the snow, “fluttering” its wings now and again. I put on a jacket and shoes and headed out to check “him” (or her) and when I opened the door, s/he flipped up-right and sat a moment, quite still. As I stepped out and got close enough, I notice s/he was breathing regularly, and suddenly looked at me and took flight, as if all was perfectly well. I've read that there's an ailment that birds suffer, some kind of parasite that infects their brain and attacks their “nervous system” causing seizures. I haven't seen that there's any “treatment” or “cure” for it, but it effects birds in the wild, for the most part, and I'm coming to learn that there's little interest in “treating” wild birds, especially if they're not on some “endangered” or “rare” list. Well, this little one took to the trees and disappeared. I'll surely be keeping watch for him/her from now on. Not sure what I can do for him/her, if anything, other than making certain that when s/he's here, THIS yard will be a safe place for him/her. AND I'll have to hope that what-ever is wrong... it isn't contagious! (The more I search for information on/about mourning doves, the more I'm learning about ALL sorts of birds. Nothing wrong with continuing an “education”... no matter what our age is.)
Yonah, mean-while, has “dropped” that “odd” feather on her wing. She did what I'd hoped and, pretty much, expected: removed it and got it out of the way on her own. Now I can actually LOOK at it. It's strange in that it's not as 'broad” as other feathers, as a “wing” feather ought to be. And it's black, no other colour or “tone”... just black. And the “base”, where it would be “attached” to the wing-proper, is short, quite “stunted”, so it doesn't seem that it grows deep enough. She's already had another one, before, and that one too, came off/out, with-in a couple of days. So I'm wondering if it isn't growing out of some “scar tissue” on her wing and I'm hoping that what-ever sort of nutrition is in this “moulting mix” I've ordered will help “correct” what-ever's causing it. And once again, “trial and error” in the absence of a proper vet. Although, one “treatment” I think of is that a vet might go at the wing, cut it, and try to have it heal properly. THAT frightens me, since Yonah's only JUST returning to some sort of “normalcy”. I'd hate to see her injuries opened and have her experience more pain... and have to wait for healing again. But, right now, the only option I have available is “wait and see”... and HOPE that all goes well... eventually. At least she's eating, bouncing about, preening, stretching her wings and... COO'ING!
This evening, at about 19.45, she “CALLED” me... the day-light was almost done, the world out-side the window was growing darker and she was ready for “lights out” and to get to sleep for the night! BRILLIANT LITTLE BIT OF LOVE! She KNOWS when she's ready to pack-it-in for the night AND has come to know that, at that time, I'll come, close curtains, settle her house, put out the lights. (And again... humans have “dominion over”, are the “intelligent” beings? I should think NOT!)
We spent some time together today, when I made sure to “drop in” and “have a chat” so she had company, I had companionship... and WE had a pretty good Winter day together. Tonight, as always, I hope she gets a good rest. Her room is warm, radiator on to maintain warmth and she can sleep with-out a thought of predators or ANY sort of thing to cause her any harm. (And I can sleep, waiting for tomorrow's “call” to “open house”.)

Wednesday 10 February:
Today began a little “later” than usual because I dozed-off after the alarm clock sounded, but... came the “call” and I woke, smile on face and, with apologies, went in to Yonah to open the curtains on a sun-soaked day of blue skies and clean white land-scape. Breakfast was served with fresh water and a “tidy” of her house. We were set for another new day (that began with the GLORY that is Yonah). It was a “typical North Country Winter” sort of day where we “hunkered” and I visited often as I kept busy with the general chores of a general day. All was well until...
This evening, I found BLOOD SPOTS in Yonah's room! There were some “spatters” on the card-board that we use to block the light during the night and a few on her curtains! I can't see where or why, there's no sign of injuries on her and I didn't see or hear her in any sort of “flying panic” during the day! AND, I notice dried “droplettes” by her water, and in the sand, which I had put in late this after-noon! Three of the same on the kitchen roll under where she “perches” over-night! ALL of them are really quite dry so none are “fresh”.
I had to step out of the house for a brief while today, to go to market, but she was calm and comfy when I left, and I saw no sign of anxieties when I got back.
And, shortly after, when I'd put the groceries up, I went in to take out the dish with her “bathing water” in it (which she didn't use) and spilt a bit of water on her “floor”, so I replaced the kitchen roll, and had put in some fresh sand, since she obviously enjoys that. As I worked, she was so calm, not at all “flighty”, as she some-times is when I get my hands and arms into her house. I was so happy because it appeared that she's getting accustomed to seeing me doing “House-Keeping”... I didn't notice any blood at that time.
The only thing that I can think of that may have caused any bleeding is that “odd” feather from her wing. As for the “splattering”, she has to take a short “flight” to get up to her perch, so it very-well might have been bleeding, even just slightly, as she flew up. That feather may be a “blood feather”, immature, and when she finally pulled it, it caused a bit of a wound and as she ruffled her feathers, preening which might be how the “drops” got all over.
I was looking for information, suggestions, recommendations about how to address that feather and, as I've already journalled, all information spans from “pull it with pliers” to “just leave it alone unless it causes injuries or obvious anxiety”. Her “specialty treats” of Niger seed and the “moulting mix” are due on Friday. I HOPE at least ONE of those helps with this situation. I'm NOT going to PULL FEATHERS out of her! We're only JUST beginning to build some kind of “Trust”... the LAST thing I'm going to do is grab her and yank her feathers out! So... I'll just keep an eye open, CAREFULLY CHECK her house every time I'm there and hope I don't see any more blood spots.
Other-wise, she settled for the day, calmly, and quietly. There's no sign of any distress or anxiety. Precious, precious, MOST CHERISHED little one!
The thing is, I keep thinking, remembering her left leg, how it just dangled from her little body, so life-less, and I believed it was broken, up against her body where “splinting” with-out an x-ray would have been useless. But obviously (now), it wasn't broken at all. And I look at her wing when she raises it and I see how so very well that's healed. I think of how he'd flown into the window one day, and there was blood on the curtains then (and how my heart was so crushed, knowing that she was injured again, and possibly in pain and distress). But she recovered from that in under and hour!
I think how, were she out in the wild, there's no “doctors” to take x-rays, or apply bandages and ointments. No “medial staff”.
At least here, with me, from me, she gets the best foods, cleanest seeds, egg, broccoli, vitamins, minerals... fresh water, and in her grit too. I can only hope, and for all the good it may or may not do... pray... “pray”. Still it hurts me to my very core to think of her in ANY discomfort, no matter how great or simply inconvenient. I'll just have to make sure to make certain that she's calm... always.
At the “end of the day”, as I went to get her “settled-in” for the night, I did a REALLY CLOSE AND THOROUGH CHECK of house and surroundings. No more signs of ANY bleeding, and no visible injuries. She was on her perch where she passes the night, looking content. The room is very comfortably warm, and she's protected in a place where she can sleep through the night with no concerns. I do the very best I humanly can. (But every little episode like today's is a set-back in my heart.) We look to tomorrow... and I'll be keeping a careful “look” to make sure there are no more “incidents”.

Thursday 11 February:
WELL... GOOD NEWS started the day: I got up, put the kettle on and went, IMMEDIATELY, in to check on Yonah, open her curtains, and “perform morning chores” of fresh breakfast and house-tidying... with INTENSE SCRUTINY OF EVERY INCH AND CORNER OF HER HOUSE AND “ENVIRONS”. SHE'S AS IF NOTHING “UNTOWARD” EVER HAPPENED! IF SHE'S NOTHING OR LITTLE ELSE, SHE'S AN INSPIRATION... I have “my days” when I feel a touch “run-down and run-over” but this little bird is AMAZING! I mean... thinking about it... flying into a window, BAM! A few hours of rest and... it never happened. I'd like to see a “superior human” give that a try. (OK. I'm sure SOME do, the ones we never hear about, but when we compare a human to a little bird... well... WELL!!! It's obvious who the “stronger” is, of the two... Ms. YONAH... BEYOND COMPARE!)
So the day began on a FANTASTIC NOTE! (When Yonah is fine, the world is fine... and if the world isn't fine... I don't care... as long as Yonah is fine.)
I put in the order for the pump and tubing for the little “pool and fountain” that I want to put together for her. Hopefully, it'll make her “house environment” a little closer to the out-doors, with a bit of a “pool” and some “running water”... the sound, perhaps, of the splashing of a brook... just something closer to her natural “home”. And I see that her “treats” (including the “moulting mix” for her feathers) are due to arrive tomorrow... “We're workin' here”! It's only February... she and I have a few months to go before the warmth returns and I'm going to to ALL I possibly can to make her “stay” FAR exceed ANY “Club” vacation! And when she heads back out there, she's going to be the knock-out of the mourning dove species! All rested, healed, well, fine, perfect plumage... Number ONE on the “highest demand” list! WOOHOO! (And “Coo-WOO-HOO-hoo” to be sure!)
As for the rest of the day, there really wasn't much “sun-shine” but her “Full Spectrum” light was on so her room was bright, and the radiator was on, so it was nice and warm. And she “played” in her sand, so that was “encouraging” to me as well. Actually, I enjoy seeing that she's active and kicking the sand about. We're at “weeks' until warmer weather arrives... I HOPE! She and I just need to “hold on, hold up, “hold out” for a bit longer.)
Today's “odd moment” came when I noticed that she'd “plucked” a small “clump” of down-feathers... small, “healthy-looking”, light grey, but a “clump” of them. I can't see where they came from, so it didn't cause a “bald spot” or anything of the sort. And there wasn't any blood on it any-where. It just bothers me to know that it came from her. “Sleep-time” came at about 18.30 tonight... the little Love! There's a strong wind blowing out there tonight. Forecast is -21° tonight! -26° tomorrow night!!! Next week is expected to “rise” to single-digits... but still below freezing. I SO WANT THE WARMER WEATHER TO COME! YONAH NEEDS TO BE BACK WITH HER FLOCK! They've been coming by more frequently to the eat in the back yard.
Oh, and that “odd” blue jay was back today. I got to walk right up to it and, for the longest while, it just stared at me, not moving at all! I leaned over to see if I could pick it up and it suddenly “came to” and took off, as if all were well and fine. I don't understand what's going on three. But I was relieved to see it flying, quite normally. I worry about that little one now too. But... BUT, I wouldn't bring it in and keep it even near Yonah, for fear of something communicable. Not to mention, I don't know how Yonah would take to having one of “them” in the house... they're REALLY aggressive so... I'll “wait and see” with that situation as well.
Yonah is doing so well these days. And tonight, she's able to rest... peacefully and safe... and there's nothing else to think about.

Friday 12 February:
And indeed... INDEED, it was QUITE COLD this morning! “Out there”, of course. In the house, especially in Yonah's room, all was quite comfortably warm and toasty... as it should be. (When I went in to open curtains and get her house together, I sang “One of these mornings, you're gonna rise-up singing. Then you'll spread you wings, and you'll take to the sky. Until that morning, there ain't nothin' can harm you... cause I'm right beside you, standin' by.” Little Love... little LOVE.
And her “treats” arrived today! I put some of the Niger seeds in a little dish beside her regular food and she went right for them, to give them a “try”. It looks like she enjoys them. This is good. Tomorrow we'll do some thorough house-keeping and I'll add some of the “moulting mix” to her regular diet. And next week, the little “pump” for her “fountain” is due to arrive. (The tubing, necessary for the whole project, will come after. OK. So we'll have to be patient... not that I want to be. But when I have the pump, I'll know better, what size dish to get. It's “submersible” but I'm NOT putting it into the water where Yonah will be bathing. I do NOT feel comfortable putting ANYthing “electric” into water, no matter WHAT the “manufacturer” says.) Anyway... her “nourishment” has arrived and THAT'S extremely important. Vitamins! Minerals! HEALTHY food! And what arrived today is called “Healthy Select”... no “additives”, preservatives and the likes. I was OBSESSIVELY CAREFUL to find food that didn't have all sorts of nonsense in it. So... She'll be one “Knock-Out Babe” when she gets back “home”!!! (Not that she isn't already. Her feathers are looking quite nice as it is. She's not “ill” or “sickly”, to be sure. But the little “extras” will, no doubt, make it all the better.)
I'm still working on how to get her back out, safely. Still pondering putting her “cage” on some kind of shelving, too high for ANY sort of critter to get at her or it. At a height and in a position where she'll feel comfortable coming and going (should she decide to “keep residence” in it). And how to “decorate”, “furnish” it for her “maximum comfort”. A place, perhaps, to “nest”? There's time... there really is... ESPECIALLY considering tonight's possible -26°!
Tonight, again, she “coo'ed” at about 19.00, to let me know that it was time to “wrap the day”. All was well for a while after “settling-in” but again... tonight, the “coo'ing in the dark”. And I continue to wonder: is she dreaming, frightened by something, lonely? It's heart-breaking to me! I SO wish I knew more about her. I DID manage to find MUCH more information this evening when I looked-up Niger seeds (what they are, where they come from, why they're considered a “luxury item” for birds... what sort of nutrition they supply). It's always the same: I go looking for one particular item or topic and it leads me into some other aspect, topic, subject. But, that's OK. My knowledge-base is expanding.
I did learn that Niger seeds come from Africa and are, allegedly, THE MOST EXPENSIVE bird food of all. But birds LOVE it AND it's the “number one preferred” Winter food because they, the seeds, provide much-needed oils and fats for birds to survive through the cold weather. Well... oils and fats are important to Yonah as well. Not TOO much, but SOME, whether she's out there or in here. And I'm THRILLED that she likes them! If she enjoys, she'll always have... for as long as she's around.
I also found more information on bird-baths and mourning doves. I'm learning! Now, I wish I could KNOW more.
When I go into the room and the light is off, she still thrusts her head to peck me. Last night, I put my hand IN, with her light on and she took a peck at it, letting me know she didn't want to be annoyed. She doesn't “attack”, the pecks are ever-so light. I believe she some-how “knows” that I won't hurt her. And I'm not “pushing” her Trust any faster than she's comfortable with. IF she ever comes to actually trust me, that will be a pure DELIGHT to me. But, if not, it'll be best for her. Trusting people... well... even *I* don't do that, and SHE has MORE reason to NEVER trust ANY people. So, we take the entire situation at HER pace and comfort... NOT mine.
As a “closing note” for the day: her wing is looking MUCH better today! Hopefully the “moulting mix” will help. And, as another “lesson”, I learnt, today, that mourning doves moult twice yearly: Spring for mating and late Summer to replace damaged feathers, and they they'll moult other times, as is necessary. Sometimes it just that the feathers that need to go, for some reason. Sometimes it's a “complete make-over” She lost a LOT of feathers when she first came in. But then, at that time, she'd been traumatised too. I suppose her little “system” is a touch “off” because of the heat in the house and such as well. All I can do is “Hope”... that this will all straighten itself out over time. Meanwhile, tomorrow... she starts on a “new” diet of healthy food and “treats”... oh, and “house-keeping” gets done tomorrow too. Oh my!

Saturday 13 February:
FOUR MONTHS TODAY... and how those months have passed so quickly! And how this little bird has healed and “settled” and has made this place her new “home”... to a degree. AND how she and I have become “friends”... Maybe one day, we'll become “Friends”... maybe... one day.
This morning, my thoughts are of making a little “pool” for her, and how I'll put her hose out, SAFELY, for her. I'm still anxious to see the snows gone, the temperatures, warm, and seeing her FLY FREE WITH HER FLOCK AGAIN! I go to sleep at night thinking the same things now, and wake with them. It can rightly said that Yonah is the beginning and end of my each and every day.
And again, this morning, as I drifted out of sleep, I heard her “call”. It was time to wake... to get up... It truly, TRULY IS a most beautiful way to wake, of a morning. (I'm thinking of getting a really good recording, if I'm lucky, of Yonah, to use as an “alarm”... for always.)
It certainly has been COLD out there today... it was -21° this morning and -11° for the day's “high”. My “patience” wear thin this year, with this cold. I'VE GOT A LITTLE LADY WHO WANTS TO BE WITH HER BEAU! AND I WANT TO SEE THEM RE-UNITED!
But... for now... “House-Keeping” got done today... complete, with new “nesting” (not that she's using it, particularly, but I want it to be available, should she want), fresh sand and... TODAY WE STARTED THE FRESH NEW DIET! COMPLETE WITH NIGER SEED AND MOULTING MIX!!!! HEALTHY! VITAMINS! MINERALS! STUFF! GOOD STUFF! Now, we'll have to see if Yonah enjoys it AND, MOST IMPORTANTLY, HOW HER SYSTEM TAKES TO IT. (“Poop-checks” all day, every day!) Thus far, by “end of day” today, it DOES appear to “Pass”. Apparently she like the new food combination (of her usual diet and the new... mixed together until she can get to more of the “Healthy” and less of the “old standard”). I mixed the new seed mix, added some Niger and some Moulting Mix for there's some of each. Tomorrow, I want to get out and check on “pond/pool” dishes and I'll need some sort of stones for the tubing in and out of it. (Most likely, I'll see what I can get at the river... they'll be the most “natural” and here, they're almost immaculately clean! Just under some snow at this time of year, but I'll find what I need... I'm sure. Good, natural stones... from Yonah's natural environment.)
Snow in the forecast again, for tonight and tomorrow... and about 4 out of 5 days for the coming week. BUT... Yonah doesn't have to be concerned about that... she's sheltered from all that AND the cold that comes with it. And THAT is what matters... the rest is just... well... the rest.

Sunday 14 February:
Today, I did get a bit of a “bowl” for Yonah's “pool”... it's plastic and, I suspect, too deep for her... not that I'd fill it to capacity, but the sides are a bit “steep”. I really want something she can easily hop into and out of. And I don't like “plastic”... I want glass. But we'll see what it does, while I continue to look for THE pool!
Meanwhile, she had a “GOOD day. No “accidents”, no injuries, no “excited moments”, no “trauma”, no “drama”. We had a very “peaceful Winter's day”. I'm glad to be able to “journal” a day like this. She actually “makes” a day “story-like”... just her presence has changed this entire house so very much. I made sure to sit with her for about 10-15 minutes, several times during the day. I sit and talk to her about what I've been doing around the house, what I wonder about what she thinks about during the course of a day, how I wish the weather was better, and... always... how VERY much I DO LOVE her and how much I DO HOPE she doesn't think of me as a “captor” because I'm not... I have NO intention of “keeping” her away from her actual “HOME” and her flock. As I talk with (to?) her, she's so calm. And often, she'll sit and stare directly at me, as if she's actually listening. If nothing else, perhaps, she'll come to recognise my voice... and maybe, when she's back out there, she'll remember that voice... hopefully as one that LOVES her and not one that she'll associate with “captivity”. But as the day disappears into another night, she's comfy on her perch. She's turned her little place into a “home” as it is. She has her “place” where she goes as the day-light turns to night, where, it appears, she knows she's safe through the dark hours.
How I wish I could find some words to express, even closely, to how she's become such an important, “integral” part of my every day... and night too, for that matter. These have been “Days of Awe”... “Days of Awe”.

Monday 15 February:
February is about half done and we're well on our way to ... SPRING! WARMER weather! Not much longer now!
But this one was another cold one, as February does its best to “shed Winter”. It was another “calm” one too, and there were many moments passed, chatting with Yonah. Her house is so tidy and “cozy”. It seems a bit “stark” to me though. It looks too much like a “cage”... I try to incorporate something from the wood-lands, something that brings a bit of “out there” to “in here”. And I'm hoping the “pool” notion is a success. I can't imagine that she doesn't miss being able to splash about some-where. OK. So at this time of year, there isn't much “water” about, but even in the snow? Of course, bringing snow in now... after she's been in the warmth all these months, would be crazy. But I worry about the lack of humidity in the house, the forced-air heating and such, and her, scratching at times. (It's difficult on me, needing to “order” and wait for delivery on things I want to provide for her. These days... when stores are quick to say “We don't have it in stock but you can order it on-line.” Well... I do my best. AND, I'm learning as I go along. I keep thinking of “new” things as time passes. If Yonah were out and about, she could change scenery as often as she wished. She'd be out foraging here and there for food and water... and companionship. So, in here, I try to keep her environment “fresh”. Not drastic changes, so that it never feels “strange again” to her, but just little “extras”, little “new” things. Keep an “interest”, something new to deal with... or not... as she chooses.)
So the over-all report of the day is another one of “calm”, companionship, friendship... LOVE!
The forecast for tonight is a “threat” that we're going to get the “brunt end” of a bit of a storm... probably at about 2.00 in the morning. The skies are truly “dark” even for this time of day, at this time of year. I'm just hoping that the electric doesn't go... It's not supposed to be “bitter cold” over-night, but, I have the “luxury” of more blankets... Yonah has just so many feathers... and I don't like the notion of her being cold... or even “chilly”. Yes, yes, I know that, no matter how cold it gets in here, the chances of it getting as cold as it is out-side are very small... but... She's not in here to be “chilled”... she's in here to be SPOILED! And that's the way I'll make it. (If I have to, I'll make a little “tent” for us... I'll bring her house in and I'll make sure that *I* keep her warm... We'll be like little kids... “camping in the living-room”... under out “blanket tent”!)
For right now... her room is the warmest, and I've put the radiator setting up to “maximum”, her door is almost closed to keep the warmth in there... warm the walls, as it were. What will come, will come... and we'll deal with it when it arrives.

Tuesday 16 February:
THIS morning, when I went in to “meet and greet” dear Yonah, she was already up, awake and about and NOT on her perch, where she's been most mornings! Now, the door to her house is closed every night, mostly because I don't want her trying to navigate the house in the dark. (I've learnt that they see quite well in the light but their “dark vision” isn't all that great and so, thinking of light coming in through a window, into a dark house, and her heading, full-speed “toward the light”... NO!) Well, as I walked into the room and got closer, I was REALLY wondering where she was... and, of course, expected the absolute WORST... seeing her laying on the bottom. BUT... BUT... THERE SHE WAS... DOWN ON THE FLOOR *IN* HER LITTLE HOUSE (I refuse to call it a “cage” because that implies she's being “confined” and she's certainly NOT...), SHE WAS STARING AT THE CARD-BOARD THAT COVERS THE BACK AGAINST TRAFFIC LIGHTS FLASHING INTO HER AT NIGHT! As I approached, she turned toward me and all I could think of is her saying “You DO know what time it is! So what's THIS STILL doing here? Let's get it down! There's day-light out there!”
So I removed the card-board, opened the curtains and she immediately headed for her corner perch where she likes to spend a lot of her day...
As I went about the business of cleaning-up and freshening food and water... I put “her” radio on... a little “country music” this morning (she enjoys some of it... not all... but some).
When I left the room... SHE STARTED COO'ING AWAY! She was happy again... and, truthfully, so was I... I was happy that she was happy AND that she was OK this morning!
The tubing for her “fountain” arrived this morning and the pump arrived this evening! NOW... I'll be out to get a dish of some kind... thinking of the clear glass pie plates or a “casserole” of some kind... as long as it's glass and fits into her house leaving her enough room to “bounce around”. Now I'm a touch “excited”!
One down-side note: “Neighbours” who don't know how to co-exist with “higher life forms”. I KNOW what it looks like next door and there's NO excuse for the banging that goes on against the wall that's Yonah's room! NONE! And, when it happens so suddenly, I can SEE that it surprises Yonah. I don't want her subjected to the ignorance, the stupidity, the utter selfishness! So I'm looking for a place, at least not too far from here, where she was when I discovered her, injured. I'm looking forward to her going back to her flock soon, and that means staying local, at the very least. I'd just go to where-ever I could find a nice little place, with “civil”, properly-behaving, properly-educated neighbours, and a nice yard, some-where with wood-lands about, and I'd do it immediately, if available. BUT... I WON'T take her away from where she's familiar! Our (Yonah's and mine) “saving grace” right now is that the vermin next door are expected to be moving out next month... Hopefully this nonsense won't become “routine” in the mean-time or... else....
OK... By end of day... the disturbances DID stop, relatively shortly after they began. Yonah got to “settle-in” comfortably for the night... and tonight I HOPE... HOPE... H.O.P.E. SHE gets to sleep through a peaceful night! I will NOT tolerate her being jolted out of sleep, in the dark, in strange surroundings. But at the moment, all is well... and I'm off to bed, hoping to wake in the morning... ready to GET TO THE STORE FOR YONAH'S SWIMMING POOL!

Wednesday 17 February:
Brilliant SUN shone in through Yonah's windows today! And with it, WARMTH! And she passed the day, basking... soaking-in and soaking-up ever bit that she could! It was BEAUTIFUL to see her, in that brilliant light, that wonderful warmth. She looked so relaxed, so content. It was a stupendous relief to my other-wise aching heart, when I think of her, in here. But, on a day like this, I also thought: she's so warm and comfortable and safe. She CAN bask, undisturbed and with NO need of “watching” every moment and surely, even more, she can just rest there, on warm sand... not on the cold snows that cover the earth out-side her windows... HER windows! And food and water close by when she wants. So I'll accept that “good” of the situation. (I wish I could bring in the rest of the flock too... just through the cold weather. She'd be happy with the companions and I'd be happy knowing they too, would be protected against the Winter. Sometimes... I have to take stock and wonder about me. But my wishes are pure. To be most certain.)
And I DID venture out today... much to my chagrin, for about 5 hours! And shamelessly, I admit: I MISSED YONAH SO VERY MUCH! And rushed through all that I had to and wanted to get done so that I could get back to her! Well, first of all, I looked for “river rocks”, the kind that people use as “decorations”, sold in bags, “polished” and round... and I found them... Not only were they rather “costly”, considering they're stones, what stopped me from even considering a purchase was the label on the bag that read “Made In China”. “MADE”? And I wondered why it's impossible for an American store to sell rocks from America. How odd. But what truly wiped away ANY consideration was remembering all the infant toys that have been recalled over the past years, also “Made In China” and found to be toxic! Well... if children's toys from there can be toxic and still sold in American stores, there's NO WAY I'm going to risk Yonah's health... and life! If I have to take a spade to the river and cut through ice there, I'll sooner do so. (The river water is indescribably clear, runs over many rocks and falls, and I've already found that, even when sitting in a container over a period of months, it remains absolutely clean and clear. Considering that the “river rocks” there are constantly washed by such water... THAT'S the way I'm going.) Next stop was the pet store where, sadly, the “Not Available In Your Local Store” was confirmed... sadly. A large store with dog and cat supplies a-plenty. But terribly void of “bird” supplies, from food through snacks and even “general merchandise”. It was sorely disappointing. And I met some-one “buying” a bird. The thought of “buying” a bird was depressing to me... especially “A” bird... only the one. Splitting a potential pair. Well? Well...
I was out of there and on to the “search for a pool”!!! In the next “home goods” store, I looked through dishes of ALL sorts and kinds, sizes and shapes. Nothing struck me... No problem. There were more stores and... I was off to the “big box” at the end of the strip of all sorts of shops.
I FOUND IT!!! I FOUND YONAH'S NEW POOL! “PYREX”. MADE IN THE USA! GLASS. NICE AND CLEAN! (It's a rectangular “storage” container, with a lid. I could use the lid under it, if I want or need, but I am THRILLED! It's a nice depth as well, for the circulating tubing, a few rocks, and low enough for her to simply hop into, splash to her heart's content, and easily hop right back out again!) With “pool in hand”, I BOLTED out of the store and off and away back home, happy of heart!
Now... when I FINALLY walked back in the door of the house, I went... ABSOLUTELY IMMEDIATELY IN TO SEE YONAH (of course, to tell her of her new pool) and I SWEAR... SHE CHEERED-UP WHEN SHE REALISED I WAS BACK! SHE COO'ED AND COO'ED AS I UN-PACKED THE DAY'S PURCHASES, PUT A “DINNER” OUT FOR THE OUT-SIDE BIRDS, GOT MY EVENING MEAL TOGETHER AND GOT TO SCRUBBING HER POOL. (Of course... “scrubbing” it, to make certain there was no dust, no “handling remnants”, no “chemicals”... just pure, clean glass.) SHE COO'ED, I COO'ED BACK... I poured several kettles of boiling water over her “washed and scrubbed” pool and set it aside to air dry over-night.
Tonight, I tell you, there was a lesson SLAMMED into me: YONAH NOTICES WHEN SHE'S ALONE, WHEN THE HOUSE IS EMPTY. I'D LEFT THE RADIO ON FOR HER WHILST I WAS AWAY BUT SHE *KNOWS* WHEN SHE'S ALONE AND SHE DOES ENJOY IT WHEN SHE KNOWS THAT I'M IN THE HOUSE... EVEN IF I'M NOT IN HER ROOM! I remember reading that doves “bond”, become marvellous companions, can become very affectionate... I NEVER expected YONAH to do so... I almost don't want her to... and that's why I've kept her company from time-to-time but never tried to “handle” or even really “touch” her. BUT TODAY I'VE COME TO REALISE THE IMPORTANCE OF “COMPANIONSHIP”... “COMPANY” TO HER! TODAY WE BEGIN A WHOLE NEW “DYNAMIC”! SHE “MISSES” ME JUST AS I “MISS” HER WHEN I'M AWAY! WELL... I'LL SEE TO IT THAT WE DON'T HAVE TO DO MUCH “MISSING” FROM NOW ON!
So tonight, she got settled as usual, with re-assurances, spoken softly, that I DO LOVE her EVER SO VERY MUCH, and that tomorrow she'll have a place to splash around in some water and that I won't abandon her...
And I go to bed with “plans” in my head for the “installation” of her new pool tomorrow!
WHAT A DAY WHAT A DAY WHAT A DAY!

Thursday 18 February:
-11° (that's minus 11 degrees) this morning and I got up and out of bed thinking “To the river for rocks” and how to put Yonah's pool in! But with that temperature... well, the chances of getting ANY rocks from the banks, never mind IN the river, well... on a scale of “slim to none”... today is a “none”. And then, we had that flood on Christmas and that SOAKED the ground along the banks so, what-ever is there is frozen... quite deep. Oh well... I just needed to figure a way to “secure” the in-take and out-put tubing... and so... Yonah's house got “opened” for the day, to the morning, and I had coffee and “planning”. (I also had NO idea how forceful the “fountain”/out-put would be from the little pump... something else to consider.) But no matter... I was determined that today, Yonah would have a POOL... whether she used it or not, it would be available to her... before this day was done! And so...
13.45 (1:45pm) YONAH'S POOL IS INSTALLED!!! Using the little pump was a lot easier that I'd expected and the pressure is quite impressive for such a tiny pump. And it's almost completely silent! Configuring the “intake” and “output” took a bit of working to get the tubing situated but, thankfully, I had a rock, from the river, and that worked perfectly! (For now... I still want to get a “water-fall” or “fountain” of some kind. NOTHING is “too much” for Yonah!) But all said, no need to go to the river to “chip” rocks out of the ice along the banks. And, all the while I worked on the pool and fountain, Yonah “supervised” from above!!! She took off and out of the cage as I started working and had a quick “flight” around the room... NOT KNOCKING INTO ANYTHING!!! NOTHING AT ALL!!! For a brief shile, she was on the floor, under the table, but I didn't want sand or anything to fall on her so I “encouraged” her out and she “perched” on the drapery-rod over the little “storage area” in her room, made herself quite comfy there. It was the perfect vantage point for her to see what was going on. *** AND *** while she was up there... I ACTUALLY GOT TO GENTLY STROKE HER BACK!!! SHE DIDN'T SEEM TO MIND AT ALL! PHYSICAL CONTACT! When I was done with the pool installation and giving her house a good cleaning, I took a length of tree limb that I had in the room as extra “perch” and held it up to her. She hopped on and I SLOWLY brought her back to her house. Just as we reached the “door”, she flew off and right back in! Shortly after getting “established back home”, she COO'ED at me! So now, it's a matter of “watching” to see if she uses and enjoys her new “pool”. Hopefully she will. If not? Oh well... I tried... at least I tried. But if so... SUPER! We'll see... in time. But, so far, it looks nice in there, gives her a place to splash about, should she want. I'm happy she has the opportunity anyway.
And so, that done, I had to run out to the market and thought it a good idea to give her time, alone, with her new “addition”. But OH! She had QUITE the morning today, with all the activity. And she handled it AMAZINGLY well! (Though she was “fluffed” for quite a while. A bit of “stress”, I shouldn't doubt. Poor little Sweet-Heart.)

At day's end, at about 19.15, we “closed” the house and closed the day. She was calm, quiet, and, no doubt, looking forward to a calm night... and her fountain is off for the night. Tomorrow? I'll make sure the water in her pool is clean, do the usual “morning tidy” but I'll give her a day to “take in” the re-arrangement of her house. PRECIOUS PRECIOUS LITTLE ONE! (She truly IS AMAZING... A WILD DOVE AND SHE'S ALREADY TOLERATING ME!)

Friday 19 February:
“We” were up and about at 7.55 this morning, the “fountain” running quite nicely, water changed... I disconnect it from the pump and let it drain almost completely as I pour several containers (yoghurt containers) of fresh water through, cleaning the pool and the tubing until all the water has been completely exchanged. And, of course, I do so under “strict supervision”. Yonah is SO curious about EVERY thing I do in her house. It really is quite fascinating to see. And her light was on (to fend-off the Winter drear).
We got another light “dusting” of snow again today. And I spent a great deal of time with her, primarily just sitting on a chair beside her house, chatting, from time-to-time. (Mostly because I was hoping to see if she had any sort of interest in her new pool... which she didn't show, but she's “comfortable” with it in there, I'd say, because she doesn't “try to keep away from it”.)
For the most part, Yonah stayed on her corner perch, a little “fluffed”. It very-well might be from the “chill” in the house. It's not “cold”, and her radiator is always on. Maybe it's still some recovery from yesterday... I hope.
This evening, I tried to give Yonah a slice of orange... I'd bought two (just in case one wasn't quite “right”) and I had one. I took the best slice of the two and “brook” it so that Yonah could get to the “good part” easily... She looked at it, gave it one quick “peck” and walked away from it. She's not interested. So? We have to find other fruits that she'll enjoy. It's difficult now, because nothing is “in season”. But we try what we can. Her proper nutrition is TOP on my list of responsibilities.
By “bed-time” this evening, she was perfectly fine, calm, looked rather content when she went to her “night perch”. And tomorrow will be another day... for both of us... and for me... continuing education.

Saturday 20 February:
It was one of “our usual” sorts of days today, Yonah's and mine. It began with a “house tidy” and I refreshed the water in her “pool”. I'd put water out, last night, to bring it to “room temperature” and to “release any gasses” that might be in it (as one would do with aquarium water). The tap water for the house is fresh, well water, with-out “chemicals”, but I just wanted to make certain that there's nothing in it that could harm her in ANY way. And the radio was on, the sun shone, for the most part, through the windows. I “visited” from time-to-time during the day, just to be a “presence”, and to “chat” a little, but for the most part, I let her relax, after all the business she had to endure yesterday.
She was some-what “animated”, eating, perching, basking when possible and other-wise, “adjusting” to the “new addition” to the place. It seems she doesn't mind the “pool”, but I'm not sure she's sure what it's there for or what it's about. Well... “time”. She's got some more months ahead before the Winter chills and the night freezes pass. We'll give it what it takes for her to decide whether or not it's a “good idea” or not.
At the end of day, I changed the water in the pool, not wanting “stale” water in there over-night (in case she decided to splash or drink it... I'm thinking: If I wouldn't drink it, it won't be in there), put up her “light block” and let her settle for the night.
I've been “discussing” her with some other folks and, for the most part, they're pretty firm in their belief that, when the time comes for Yonah to “return to the flocks”, she's not going to WANT to leave. Good food, fresh water, a nice, warm environment and now a POOL? Well! Why SHOULD she want to leave? “Why”? Because I'm not a dove and, although I have no objections to her having run of the house, should she want that, this house isn't the wood-lands. Not to mention, she's NOT a “pet”! Well... I suppose we'll see. At any rate, the plan stands as originally: Come the passing of the cold, I'll set her up on the back gallery, open the door and we'll take it from there... Mean-while... she's here, she's MOST welcome here, this is HER house and home... she's safe AND SHE'S SO VERY MUCH LOVED.
Another day... another “wrap”.

Sunday 21 February:
The sun shone clear, bright and warm today, and Yonah took FULL advantage of it, laying where it shone in, basking and soaking. The temperatures out-side reached only just high enough to start a bit of a melt, but the air itself was quite chilled. February is almost done, gone, passed! Winter is drifting by, into the past. March is on it's way and with it... “Spring”! And with that, we get closer to Yonah's return to the flock. (I DO wonder how she's going to take to it... after a Winter of plentiful food at hand, water, warmth, protection... The little LOVE. And I KNOW I'll miss her! I'll miss her terribly. She's become a “presence” in this old house, a bit of REAL LIFE! Her “morning mourning” waking me every day. Seeing her basking and bouncing from perch-to-perch. She's never appeared to be “depressed” or anything of the sort. Yes, I might enjoy having her here for “the duration”, as it were. But my heart insists that she deserves to, at the very least, be given the opportunity to get back to the life she was born into. My MAIN, PRIMARY HOPE is that she'll be able to get out there, take flight, and soar... SOAR with the best and the rest of them! Her left wing still doesn't look “perfect”, but she IS able to take some flight. The MAJOR question is: will she be able to fly from danger? As always... it's all a matter of time and, I'm NOT tossing her out into the “wilderness”... She'll ALWAYS have the option of returning to her house... on a shelf... on the back gallery, when ever and as long as she wants.)
As today's sun set and another day closed, I refreshed the waters, as I now do routinely, and, as I do... with LOVE... made sure this MOST PRECIOUS LITTLE LOVE, is safe, protected, has food in case she gets hungry during the night... and... before I left her for a night's sleep, I let her know that ... I DO LOVE HER SO VERY MUCH! (I whisper that to her before I leave the room.) Her little radiator is on, her door is almost closed to keep the warmth in for her... yes, she's safe and warm... and yes... LOVED! SO! VERY! MUCH! (And I'm SO! VERY! HONOURED! AND BLESSED! AND GRATEFUL!)

Monday 22 February:
It was so “cute” this morning... I was in the kitchen, preparing morning coffee when, from behind Yonah's door, I heard the “rustle”... she fluttered her wings... fluffed her feathers. When I opened the door, she was on her perch, looking toward the door almost as if waiting for me to come in! So, indeed, I immediately went, took the “light block” from her window, opened her curtains and let the “dim light” that today's sun gave us, through “February clouds”.
When I'd done with my first coffee, I got to changing the water in her pool. At night, I turn the fountain off so that the little “splashing” doesn't disturb her, and in the morning, I change the water and put it back on. A little “light house-keeping” this morning, because she's not “dirty”... it's mostly to check and remove the “poops” from over-night, replace the kitchen roll where needed. Fresh food, fresh drinking water. And to see her watching... WATCHING my every move. THAT fascinates me... that she's so curious and yet, so calm about it all.
One “moment” though, today. At some point, something... SOMETHING startled Yonah and there was MUCH FLUTTERING about! When I went in to check on her, she “coo'ed” and I did a thorough “look” at the house... TWO DROPS OF BLOOD AGAIN... ON THE KITCHEN ROLL ON HER FLOOR!!! I don't know WHAT startled her! I'll HOPE (for their sake) it wasn't another “thump” from the neighbours. I'm seriously looking into other places, but the PRIMARY thought is that I do NOT want to take Yonah away from her, where she's familiar, where her flock is! But this nonsense of un-necessary “thumping” and “bumping” against the walls? Well...
The good news is that there's no visible sign of injury to Yonah and she obviously isn't frightened by me because she coo's when I enter the room so we're still “Friends”.
It was another “crisp” day today... so much so that when I hung the bed linens on the line, they solidified almost immediately. BUT... Yonah and I spent quite a bit of time together... in the warmth of her room. And tonight? The “crisp” is out-side the window... she's quite warm, toasty, and protected... and, to be sure... LOVED!

Tuesday 23 February:
I, personally, had one of my “dragging” sorts of days. This “illness” (we'll call it that) and the treatments just, sometimes, seem to PULL at some life-force. BUT... Yonah is here and I'm doing my best to make sure that all... ALL goes well for not less than the remainder of this Winter and ALL of the Spring, until ALL possibilities of cold and freezing are well behind us. (And, I hope for a good portion of the Summer as well, so I can be SURE Yonah is safe and sound and happily returned to her flock.)
Truth is though, having Yonah here is it's own “treatment” and “therapy” and “encouragement” and “reason to fight”. There is NOTHING in Life that compares to the INDESCRIBABLE JOY of hearing her call in the morning, going in to HER room, and seeing her there, after a night of being able to sleep with-out a care. And seeing how well she's healed. How miraculously she's tolerated me and my presence and my obsession with keeping her comfortable, clean, safe, nourished, healthy... well... My “discomfort is nothing, really... nothing, especially compared to the trauma she suffered... survived and recovered from! I brought her into this house to heal and to be protected from frost-bite and needing to fend against the bitter cold, to make sure she had all the nourishment she needed to heal... I brought her into this house with the most-solemn promise to protect her until she can be safe and sound against the weather and predators in her natural environment... I MADE A VOW... AND I'M KEEPING IT... NO MATTER WHAT!!!
Her “Healthy” specialty food is due to arrive tomorrow. I'm looking forward to being able to add it to the seeds she's become accustomed to having... the regular “wild song-bird” seed that she used to get and that her “flock” still gets. This “new” mix has some little “fruits and veggies” in it along with vitamins and minerals. Yes, indeed... she'll be in top shape soon, and ready to get out there and give the competition a good, stiff run for the mates!!! And today, she ate very well, indeed. I happened to walk into the room whilst she was eating and... she just continued to eat! She's comfortable enough with me around that she doesn't sense the need to stop eating! Now THAT'S JUST THE HIGHEST COMPLIMENT AND HONOUR A HEART COULD EVER HAVE BESTOWED UPON IT! WHAT A LITTLE LOVE SHE IS! Some-how she's come to KNOW that I mean her no harm... she KNOWS!!! SHE'S AMAZING!!!
So tonight... the AMAZING little bundle of FEATHERED JOY AND JUBILATION AND LOVE... sleeps, again... safe, sound, warm, protected... and SO LOVED! (The snow is falling out-side and sliding off the roof... It's times like this that I feel I did the right thing by bringing her in.)

Wednesday 24 February:
Yonah's “new food” arrived today! At last! I'm rather excited, because this “Healthy Select” allegedly has no chemicals, preservatives and all sorts of “un-natural” ingredients. It's also got the fruits and vegetables that provide the nutrients that Yonah SHOULD be having. I'm not sure that what's in there is what she'd be eating around here, but, as long as it's easy enough for her to eat, and she eats it, and it provides the “essentials”, I'm happy. We'll see how it “works” for her (or not), as time goes by. (I have to say that, some time ago, there were reports of dog and cat food, well-known, popular brands, that were causing everything from “general illness” to actual DEATH, and I ALWAYS have in mind the fact that we NEVER REALLY know WHO is handling these products, so it's ALL a matter of “faith”... something that I admittedly don't have much of... particularly where “humans” are involved. So I'll be anxious... Then again, even in “nature”, poisoning is possible so... This too is “trial and error” and doing the best I humanly can do. “Faith”... we never know for certain.)
And there was ANOTHER moment of “fun and fascination” today... I took Yonah's “pool” completely out and apart for a “thorough” cleaning and when I took it to the kitchen, I'd left the door to her house open. WELL! WHEN I GOT BACK TO HER ROOM, SHE WAS STANDING, THERE, IN-SIDE, *AT* THE LITTLE DOOR, STARING OUT, UP, DOWN, SIDE -TO-SIDE, TAKING-IN THE “NEW PERSPECTIVE” OF HER ROOM. IT LOOKED LIKE SHE WAS TRYING TO DECIDE WHETHER OR NOT TO “MAKE A MOVE!”. AS IF SHE WAS THINKING “NOW *THIS* IS INTERESTING. I WONDER... SHOULD I TRY TO GET OUT OF HERE? OR... MAYBE NOT... I WONDER...” It REALLY was both cute and funny to see. But when she acknowledged that I was in the room too, she turned and went back in. “Maybe later...” or... “OK. He's back. It's OK now.” I got such a laugh out of it, and she looked SO adorable, I'd've loved to just give her a hug! (I'm going to miss her, so deeply that I can't even begin to describe the emptiness, BUT my heart will be more glad, at peace, knowing that she made it over and through her injuries, has been well-fed, nourished, cared FOR and ABOUT, and SO LOVED... LOVED!)
Well, her pool is now quite sparkling-clean, fresh water running. Her house is nice and clean... safe from “stuff” that might present any threats to her health. And as day closes, she's all nice and comfy, warm, safe... and we close another day together, as Winter begins to pass. Good days are coming... warm nights are coming... and we're hanging-in here... together.

Thursday 25 February:
At about 7.00 this morning... the “call” came... “Woo-HOO-hoo-hoo” and OUR day began... As the kettle for coffee came to the boil, Yonah's curtains got open to the little bit of sun that tried to break through the clouds and we “chatted” as “waters got changed”.
There was a “haze” on the mountains across the road... light snow falling in the higher elevations. But over the Eastern hills, the sun rose, trying to give us some brightness. The temperature was -3° with “promises” of -1° for the day's “high”. Well... the sun-light is always welcome, but it's still February and my “patience with Nature” is wearing thin. THERE'S A LITTLE LADY HERE WHO SHOULD BE RE-UNITED WITH HER “FOLKS”! NOT, mind, that I want to get her out of the house, out of my life... I WANT to get her BACK TO HER LIFE... As much as I know that I'm doing ALL I possibly can to make her comfortable here, as much as I know that I want her recovered, healed and healthy... I'm not a dove, I'm not “her flock” and as much as I LOVE her, and having her here, in house and heart, it's a constant sadness for me, especially when I see other doves out-side and I think “SHE should be with them... and THEY should be with HER!”
And during the day, e-mails... I, of course, take and send photos along with these little “up-dates” to folks. And folks like to “suggest” (or “recommend”) that when Yonah leaves, I should “get another bird”. “Get another bird”? If nothing else, I will NOT participate in the “selling” of these little ones! I will NOT be part of any “demand” for them! I'd be quite happy if the entire “bird-selling businesses” went completely bust! (How about those “people” put their kids on a market, sell THEM off? How about human women pop-out the babies and ship them to stores, or put them up for sale on the Internet? How about folks buy kids... and put them in cages in rooms? How about THAT? It just sickens me to the core, thinking about it. “Selling” a LIFE! And in the “stores”, how they heartlessly and mindlessly reach into those cages and separate little friends... or even relatives! I don't care that those little ones were born into and raised in human captivity. I just can't stomach it... “Get another bird”? I'm sure they mean well, but... “Go get another life”. To me, it's not wonder humanity has the likes of war, plagues and the likes... Well-deserved... my opinion, of course but... WELL-deserved!)
MEAN-while... now that I've gotten that out of the system...
Yonah's house got a good, but “light” house-keeping today. I didn't want to start tearing the place apart and disturbing her. So I made certain it was clean... AND... FRESH NEW FOOD IS SERVED! I've mixed a batch for the next few days:
Primarily, the small seeds I sift out of the “commercial” Wild Song-bird mix. I use that as a “base” because that's what she's accustomed to.
Next, the new seed mix “Healthy Select” gets added and mixed together.
Then, about a heaping tea-spoon of the Niger seed and the same of the “moulting” mix.
How it works out will be seen... but I'm sure Yonah will be getting good nutrition from now on and THAT is so very important... to me and for both of us!
As the day came to the “early” close of the season, we “closed-up”, curtains, “light block”... radiator on... fresh waters, plenty of food, an “evening chat” about the day today, the night to come and what we'd like to do with tomorrow... “Tomorrows”... these days they're what I look forward to... in so many ways, for so many reasons (the top one being, being able to keep Yonah safe... continuing to be healthy...)... “Tomorrows”... Tonight, safe, sound, LOVED... SO CHERISHED....

Friday 26 February:
M'Lady was up and about when I got up and out of bed this morning, waiting for the opening of the curtains, the “morning routine” of water-changes, light house-keeping and we greeted another day... together. It TRULY IS A JOY to hear her in the morning... first sound of a day!
I'm a touch pre-occupied with the workings of a way to set her up on the back gallery, come the warm weather. Not sure if I'll build some sort of “shelving” or purchase something sturdy, something that the likes of squirrels or “night predators” can climb. It's about two more months now, IF Nature co-operates. And I wonder... how will Yonah react... how will the other doves react to her... AND WILL ANY OF THEM REMEMBER HER? (I'm thinking: “web-cam”... I'm thinking I'm a touch crazy. But I'm SO intrigued!
During the day, she coo'ed quite often. My heart SOARS when I hear that because I think: she's no longer “afraid”, she's comfortable here... comfortable enough to coo! AND, tonight, again, as I had “meal” and during the washing-up after... WE CHATTED from room-to-room! Che coo'ed, I replied, she coo'ed in response... and it went back and forth for almost the better part of an hour! WE CHATTED! I can't help but smile, genuinely, when this happens. I don't know if anything I “coo” makes any sense at all... maybe I sound like another language, or the “proper” language with a REALLY HEAVY ACCENT. But it elicits a response! And it drives the fact that we, humans, are supposedly SO “brilliant”... but all we hear from a dove is “Coo-WOO-hoo-hoo”... no matter what they're saying... WE have NO idea what they're saying to us, but THEY make SOMETHING sensible of what WE say to them! (“Superior humans”... BS!)
THE BESTEST NEWS OF TODAY THOUGH: TONIGHT, THE SUN IS SETTING JUST TO THE NORTH OF THE HOUSE ACROSS THE ROAD! AT LAST! AT WHAT FEELS LIKE, LONG... ***LONG*** LAST! THE NIGHTS ARE GETTING SHORTER. THE DAYS ARE GETTING LONGER!!! THE SUN IS COMING UP OUT OF THE SOUTH AND HEADING NORTH! OH! RELIEF! LONGER DAYS... WARMER NIGHTS! BÉBÉ YONAH WILL BE GOING *** HOME *** SOON!
Sadly though, tonight's forecast? “Snow”. Oh well... it might be the “end” of the month... but the month is still February. Oh well...
And as the day-light dips to twilight... Yonah gets settled for another night... together, here, in HER room, in HER house... HERS!!! ALL HERS! THIS WORLD OWES HER ETERNAL GRATITUDE, LOVE, RESPECT!!! (Yes, I do, in particular... and I make certain that it's all given to her... freely... and in ABUNDANCE! She's my “LIFE”... to the point of a seriousness that I know others wouldn't and can't fully understand.) These days,weeks and months have been “miracles of biblical proportion”!!! Now let's get on with SPRING!

Saturday 27 February:
Snow... yes... snow this morning. But it wasn't accompanied by the bitter cold. “Breakfast was served”, as it is every morning, to the flocks in the yard. The came. They ate. They departed to where-ever it is they go to of a Winter's day. And Yonah? Yonah woke, her curtains got opened to the Winter OUT-side, but IN HER ROOM... all was warm and comfy, dry and still.
Waters got changed, house got tidied.
She's been coo'ing at night again, lately. Last night, when she started, I went into her room, not turning any lights on. I pulled the chair over to her and sat, talking, softly, trying to tell her that it's OK... she's safe, and she's not alone. I understand that I'm not “one of hers”, but I LOVE her, at least as much as she's ever been LOVED by ANY other. She thrust her head forward as I spoke, looking directly AT me. Now, I dare some-one to try telling me that she doesn't recognise my voice AND that some-how she associates it with a “friend”, a source of “comfort”. I DARE some-one to TRY. People... REALLY!
She calmed, and I spoke a little while longer until she appeared to be settling to go back to sleep and I left her to get to a night's rest. SHE'S MY LOVE!
And this morning, all was well with OUR world.
For the most part, I kept busy about the house, but going in to pass time with her at ever possible moment. We had another wonderful day together. And she really does appear to be quite comfortable in her little house in her room. That's the most important matter of a day to me. I've no idea how much more time we'll have together, but for the time we do have... well... When she leaves... and I know, for certain, that she's OK “out there”, either because she stays around and I see her or she takes to the skies to “see the world”... When she leaves... That's all I'm saying...

Sunday 28 February:
Another month... another month... AND IT'S ANOTHER MONTH CLOSER TO WARM WEATHER! Right now, THAT is what matters the most! (Although, the forecast? -25° tomorrow night again! -20s for the nights of the week to follow.. It was -3° this morning... BUT I SEE 3, 4 and 5° during the days! AND NO “MINUSES”!!! AT LAST!)
At about 7.00 this morning, came “the call”... Ms. Yonah-The-Love was up, awake and ready for “curtain call”. With a smile on my face, I bounced (almost, any-way) out of bed, robe on, kettle on and CURTAINS OPEN!
We did thorough house-keeping today including a thorough cleaning of the “pool” and changing the sand. OO! Quite the BUSY today! And, as is the always-usual... under “supervision”. Yonah takes visible interest in the goings-on in her house. It's REALLY amazing. She used to seem visibly “anxious” when I'd work that close to her. But now, she finds a place where she can perch comfortably and watch... calmly. WHAT a difference! WHAT TRUST! WHAT AN HONOUR!
Well... tomorrow brings March... and with it... Spring... Our time together grows shorter... my heart begins the preparations for a large, dark emptiness... and yet, at the same time, the JOY of seeing this little one flying again... FREE... OPEN... This is the precise meaning of the word... “Bitter-Sweet”... I'll never live long enough to forget this Winter... it's not just a memory any more... it's actually... heart-beats... and always will be.