​For a few months now, Lynne Dorfman and I have been blocking out writing days on our calendars so we can work on a second edition of Mentor Texts. Yesterday was a writing day for us, but it would probably be better to call it a writing/bird watching day! Now that the weather is getting at least a little warmer we have moved to a favorite writing spot of ours – the enclosed back porch at my house. And amid all the picture books, notebooks, post its, and pens sprawled across the table can be found Peterson’s Field Guide to Birds of North America (an app on my ipad) and some good binoculars.
 
Lately, my feathered backyard friends have been buzzing with new activity like nest building, mealworm gorging, and seed sampling. I’ve welcomed back the finches, bluebirds, chickadees, cardinals, sparrows and wrens. I’ve also noticed quite a few new visitors, too, like the two rosy-breasted grosbeaks I spotted on Saturday. Yesterday, right in the middle of composing, Lynne burst out with a “Look at that bird!” And literally, right in the middle of typing a word I grabbed my binoculars and zoomed in. There he was, a newcomer, the most beautiful blue feathered bird I had ever seen, making himself at home on the birdfeeder perch and just feasting away. But what was it? A blue bunting? An indigo bunting? A blue grosbeak? After studying it awhile and consulting the guide, we think it might have been a blue grosbeak as they are more common to our area.
 
I couldn’t help but think about the many kids I’ve been with in classrooms throughout the years that get distracted by the trash truck outside, or an interesting cloud, or the sound of a nearby motorcycle.  I get it now - sometimes you just have to stop and take notice or life’s most interesting treasures just might pass you by.
 
I suggested to Lynne that perhaps we would get more work done if we moved inside. But we really don’t want to do that. It’s nature’s beauty that inspires us and teaches us how to look closely and notice – how to notice what’s right there all around us, how to notice what authors do, how to notice what’s in a book. Time well spent!