I talk to animals…

…and they talk back!

I swear they do! I have a habit of talking to my cats, who oil I know understand everything I say. They even talk to me and I usually understand what they’re saying.

So it wasn’t much of a stretch to talk to the birds, squirrels and other critters that hang around here. I greet them in the morning. Ask how things are going. Do they need anything.

Just the other day I had a chickadee land right next to me, look me directly in the eye, then tweet at me. I knew right away he was telling me he needed more food. I reached up to get his feeder (to peek in to see if I understood correctly) and sure enough, it was empty. I promptly filled it, put it back and shortly afterwards, the chickadee came back, flew close to me, looking me in the eye again and tweeted his thanks. (I’m not kidding…sometimes I think I’m making it all up because it’s so unreal…but I’m not. My mom has witnessed these interesting exchanges!)

Yesterday, little red (red squirrel who has been hanging around all winter) was making a real racket. I was turning him out until he got up on the back of a chair – eye level with me – looking at me through the patio door, screeching. He got my attention! I listened…determined he was out of bird seed…sure enough. He was!

Today, I asked a chickadee if I could take his picture. I took one :

Then he turned, as if to say…this is my better side…

So I took another shot, then he moved to a branch, posing (seriously, he sat waiting for me) as if saying…this spot is better:

I took several this time, changing the settings until I got a picture I liked.

If you’ve ever photographed birds, you’ll know…they don’t often stay put. This guy was a perfect model, giving me lots of time to get the right picture.

Sometimes we get so caught up in the daily grind of our lives, we become distant and out of touch with what’s important. Pay attention to all that is around you…especially nature. Talk to your plants and animals. But also listen! Nature is always communicating with us…we just need to get in the moment, get in sync and be.

Give it a try today and let me know how it goes.