The Cycle of Life

Watching nature from our deck is a delight to all of us. Spring is especially interesting, with so many birds coming back, squirrels chasing each other around the fir tree, bunnies hopping about and the deer resting peacefully on our lawn to chew their cud. In the past we have also seen a coyote cross the yard, we have seen a rabbit bouncing around and all over a deer. It looked like a scene of Bambi and Thumper, it was quite entertaining. Yesterday we saw the other side of the circle. The boys spotted a very adorable little bunny, hardly bigger then a baseball, with a wound on its hind legs. It looked like it just barely got away from a predator's mouth. Even though he was offered a carrot and some water, he showed no interest in it. Later that afternoon, as the little fur ball sat on our grass, we spotted a cat sitting very still at the edge of the woods. Soon another cat approached and froze in mid stance as it peered down the bunny. It was quite amazing to watch these house cats' hunting skills. They might be domesticated but their instincts are alive and well. It was very hard for the boys to keep form banging down on the window and chase the cats away. The bunny, with it's injuries, would not have made it for much longer anyways. If we had not mowed our lawn this past weekend the bunny might have been able to hide, but this was not the case.

The morning after all was calm again as the deer enjoyed the morning sun.