Cheeky Chucky Chickadee

Cheeky Chucky Chickadee
   stopped by the house today.
He’s been here before,
   but came for some more
   of the seeds we put in the tray.
Chucky and his friends seem to like our trees 

   and the feeder we put out back.

They come to play
   all through the day,
   and whenever they need a snack.

We sneak up to the window
   and hope they don’t see us …

We don’t want to scare them away.
We just want to capture

   little Chucky in a picture,
   so that we might send it your way.  

He said, “Say hi to Ruby!”
And then he flew away.  😊

 

Cheeky Chucky's friend Charlene
  flew by and waved hello.
She had seeds in her mouth
  as she headed off south,
  mumbled, “See ya in a week or so.”
 
She does that a lot.
She stops by, or not.
She's always on the go.
There's places to be, and things to see.
Youngsters are like that, you know.
 ________________________________________________

For Ruby, from Chucky. 👴

Ring Out, Wild Bells!

Alfred Lord Tennyson gave us this more than a century ago ...

    Ring out old shapes of foul disease;
        Ring out the narrowing lust of gold;
            Ring out the thousand wars of old,
                Ring in the thousand years of peace.

     Ring in the valiant man and free,
          The larger heart, the kindlier hand;
                    Ring out the darkness of the land, 

                         Ring in the Christ that is to be.

Ring out, wild bells, to the wild sky,
The flying cloud, the frosty light:
The year is dying in the night;
Ring out, wild bells, and let him die.

Ring out the old, ring in the new,
Ring, happy bells, across the snow:
The year is going, let him go;
Ring out the false, ring in the true.

Ring out the grief that saps the mind
For those that here we see no more;
Ring out the feud of rich and poor,
Ring in redress to all mankind.

Ring out a slowly dying cause,
And ancient forms of party strife;
Ring in the nobler modes of life,
With sweeter manners, purer laws.

   Ring out the want, the care, the sin,
     The faithless coldness of the times;
       Ring out, ring out my mournful rhymes
         But ring the fuller minstrel in.
     Ring out false pride in place and blood,
        The civic slander and the spite;
           Ring in the love of truth and right,
              Ring in the common love of good.

________________________
For Ruby for when the right day comes.
Grampa loves you dearly.