This past year, I received the perfect birthday gifts. Bird feeders and a beautiful bird bath. I spent a lot of time watching the birds out my window when I was too tired to do anything else. I found watching the birds to be life-giving. My bird book regularly sat on the table for quick identification of any new visitor. Those birds brought joy to my days. They still do. This winter we have kept the feeders full. The sparrows and house finches fly in together in droves, rhythmically taking turns for food (actually they fight quite a bit, naughty birds). The awkward juvenile cardinals grew their feathers in just in time to look splendid this winter. The nuthatch is here and gone again with each seed. Yea, I could keep going, cataloging the delight I feel with each sighting.
So when my first assignment in ceramics class was a teapot that doesn’t look like a traditional teapot, the birds came to mind. I’ll be sure to post the finished project after the final firing. Thank you, birds, for being my inspiration.
And thank you, daughter the potter, for helping me with my first project.
