Sunday's Sentiment: Remembering my Grandfather's Appreciating Trees

My maternal grandfather, Albert Elmer Herman Lewis Melahn, can be seen in an unndated snapshot (directly above) with a tree he had just planted. He died in the mid to late 1970's on this day of January 24th. I have featured many "stories" about him within a number of posts here on Blogger, including my fourth post ever (published on 1-8-2010). 

Alhough I never had a conversation with him about trees, I do suspect that my deep appreciation for them may have come from him. In fact with the help of Juan V (who has worked with me for over ten years), I have planted and replanted a number of trees in my rooftop garden, including a Japanese Maple (also known as a 'Tamukeyama').

She can be seen in the next sequence of photo-ops where various birds are enjoying time in her immmediate vicinity. 

These include a male House sparrow...

... a female Baltimore oriole...

...a Mourning dove (whose gender I don't know)...

... a Blue jay (whose gender I don't know as it usually takes seeing how the bird is behaving to determine if the creature is male or female)...

... a male House finch..

... female House finches...

 ...and an adult female Northern cardinal.

Another one of the trees in my garden which is enjoyed by different birds is my is my Crabapple tree. She can be seen in the next set of photo-ops "accomodating" various feathered friends such as a male Northern cardinal and a male House finch seen in the next set of photographs (respectively)...

...and she also gets visits from a Northern mockingbird  (whose gender I don't know as it usually takes seeing how the bird is behaving to determine if the creature is male or female).

My Japanese larch (seen in the next set of images) is frequented by birds, including a Northern mockingbird  (whose gender as I've said I don't know as it usually takes seeing how the bird is behaving to determine if the creature is male or female).

This tree also seems to a favorite hiding place of squirrels.

The trees and birds seen here are fetured within my three volume hsrdcover book series, Words In Our Beak, where the stories are told from the perscepctive of Cam, a female cardinal who was named for my maternal grandparents.

The books mske a great Valentine's Day gift for love birds who love birds!

MY BIRD BOOKS

Just a quick reminder, Valentine's Day is less than one month away, so if you would like my book series as A Vsletne's Day gift, consider acting quickly to avoid delays caused by shipping.