My Friend

Yesterday was pretty uneventful. I went for a short walk. It was short because it is getting cold around here. The cold is no bother but the wind can make a difference.
So I tucked in and roasted a chicken. Is there anything easier than roasting a chicken? Clean it up, stuff it into the oven, and two hours later it is done. The gravy was good even though I did not have any white wine to add to it. I am growing sage and thyme and basil in the bedroom window, along with the lemon tree (which has dozens of tiny lemons on it) so I stuffed the chicken with fresh herbs and an onion and a cut up orange. Chicken, mashed potatoes, and green beans made a wonderful dinner. By the way, Wondra makes making gravy much easier.
I decided to share my bounty with my friend the squirrel. I put a dish of grains and nuts and fruit on the deck, under the overhang so that he doesn't have to worry about the hawk that frequently circles overhead.
For years I fought the battle against squirrels and the bird feeder. Then I began to appreciate the ingenuity of the little rascals. No matter what I did to keep them out of the bird feeder, within a day they found a new way to get into it. My little friend will come to the deck for scraps and water, sit in the railing, and stare into the window at me. The birds simply flit in and out without so much as a "Thank You very much". The squirrel sits on the deck as still as a stone if the hawk is overhead. The deck is grey, the squirrel is grey, so as long as it doesn't move I think that it is invisible to the hawk. The squirrel lives in the attic of the house next door. I often see it scampering across their roof, their grey roof. I don't know if squirrels hibernate but I will continue with the food and water as long as it keeps disappearing. It seems better to feed the squirrel than to put food in the bird feeder to feed the cat.
The squirrel seems to have better control of its bowels than the birds do. It has yet to leave me a little calling card on the porch.
Feeding the squirrel is a small gesture but it feels so good to do it. I wish that I had the resources to feed my fellow human beings. The small contributions that I make to the local food bank and the Salvation Army somehow don't seem to be enough to me. I wish that I could invite the whole human race over for dinner. I would hope that they like little fishy things.