Summer Evenings

By Mina Anne Chudilowsky

On summer evenings, I enjoy sitting out on a lawn chair enjoying the quietness of my backyard. I especially like it if there is a gentle breeze blowing.

I may have the hose in my hand and water the plants and lawn, and cool my feet as I watch the birds dart back and forth.

There is a pair of mourning doves who live nearby who frequent my yard and coo to one another. There used to be a scrub jay who visited, but now there is a couple who are very bold and know that I usually scatter old bread crumbs for my bird friends. They jump around and scold me because, today, the grass contains no crumbs.

The hummingbirds flit from the Bird of Paradise to other plants and flowers and may rest on a tree for a while. It’s fun to see and hear them zip through the yard and come to a fluttering stop at a flower.

The mocking birds call to one another and may chase off an invading crow who has come too near their territory.

The crows usually congregate in my pine tree out front or on the electrical wires making their raucous noise until another calls them away to explore new territories.

Sometimes, if I’m lucky, the trees or bushes will fill up with tiny, little finches who chirp happily while jumping from branch to branch.

The sparrows have gotten a little brazen and don’t seem to fear me if I’m not too close to them.

I enjoy watching butterflies flutter from flower to flower, and there seems to be a bigger variety this year.

A solitary bee once hung out by the jade bush and became very territorial and buzzed around my head, trying to chase me away. I’d spray around me, or I’d wave my hand until it flew off, only to return to the jade plant and then buzz me again.

My neighborhood is relatively quiet. Not too much traffic or dogs barking, although I can hear the 605 Freeway if I tune into it.

The smells coming from my neighbor’s kitchen or barbeque gets me thinking about dinner, but it is too relaxing to go in yet.

If I’m not watering the lawn, I may sit out there reading my current book. I still see the activity in my yard as I frequently look up.

I stay out there until the mosquitoes come out and start salivating as they see me -- their dinner, hopefully -- in the middle of their hunting ground. Then I make a hasty retreat to the house and those wonderful contraptions called screens.

Mina Anne Chudilowsky is a member of the writing class offered through the Cerritos College Adult Education Program. It is held off-campus at the Norwalk Senior Center.