 |
 |
|||
History
Burr's Book
Recipes
Maple Syrup
Maple Products
Burr's Maple Kettle Corn
Farm Gifts
Vermont Cheeses
Gift Certificates
Corporate Gifts
Subscribe to News from Vermont
News from Vermont
Ski Morse
Visit Us
Shopping Cart
Ordering & Shipping Info
200 Years of family tradition make Morse Farm Maple Syrup the the best maple syrup you've ever tasted
| SHIPPING | SHOPPING CART | CHECKOUT | CONFIRM |
News from Vermont #20 - Hummingbirds, skunks, and humans
Burr Morse
Morse Farm Maple Sugarworks
Montpelier, VT
Hi again. It's Burr from Vermont.
Did you ever hear a hummingbird scream? Well, actually they don't really scream but make a sort of a feeble peep..."feep, feep, feep". The other day I was going home for lunch. As I passed through our loading dock, there was a tiny hummingbird fluttering against the roofing between two rafters. He was in great distress, feep, feep, feeping, and taking quite a battering. He could have escaped very easily by simply losing a few inches in altitude and flying out the large opening over the loading dock but was bent on only going up. I felt sorry for the little guy, but thought he would surely figure it out while I was at lunch. Half an hour later I returned and there he was, still in a panic between those rafters. Clearly the little guy needed my help so I got the step ladder and climbed to where I gently grabbed him and released to the freedom of the great outdoors.
This reminds me of a story my father, Harry, used to tell. He came across a skunk one day who's front end was firmly stuck in a jar while its back end was a rigid turret, poised and ready for action. As you might imagine, my father was stumped over just how to approach helping this creature. Knowing he had to do something, he opted for psychology over force. Talking gently to it, he crept toward its relaxing posterior. Reaching point blank range, Harry knelt down and gently stroked the skunk's back. More like a beagle, Mr. Skunk warmed up to to the massage with obvious pleasure and a slow wriggling from the jar. Before he ambled away, he turned toward my father and said "thanks a lot" in a language only understandable to other skunks and a relieved Harry Morse.
It seems people are doing the same thing a lot these days. We get into tough spots, panic and begin flailing ourselves. Like the hummingbird flying down and the skunk relaxing its tightened muscles, if we would only count to ten and think, we would walk away from many a predicament. Here in Vermont, life is a little slower and we find ourselves saying "feep, feep, feep" a little less often. I love what I do, so an occasional panic attack is ok anyway. Speaking of what I do, some of my art work is now being shown on the "visit us" page of our web site. Check it out and then visit us! We will soon begin our famous foliage season and things are beautiful around here. Vermont is closer than you think and our web site is even closer than that. Sure, it's ok to buy, too, but you don't have to.
Oh by the way...the next time you see a skunk stuck in a bottle and it's saying "feep, feep, feep", it might only be a hummingbird; thereagain, it's probably a skunk, but for heaven's sake, HELP THE GUY OUT 'CAUSE HE'S IN TROUBLE!
Have a feepless day,
Burr
