Breakfast With Ted

No one goes to the patio now except at night when Ann goes out to spread old bread and sunflower seed on the small table for birds to eat at dawn. The next morning she gets up early and watches the birds from the breakfast nook where she and Ted would sit and marvel at the pecking order. First the sparrows arrive and eat as fast as possible before the cardinals and jays come and take command. Then the starlings land and raise a ruckus even when the table is theirs alone. The starlings leave like jets on a mission and in just a few minutes two doves drop down. One walks behind the other and they eat whatever is left behind. It’s no wonder Ann’s partial to one of the doves. He reminds her of Ted and lets the other dove walk ahead and eat the best of what is left. His feathers are always perfectly in place, same color as Ted’s hair. Donal Mahoney