Still, it is fun to sing in church

A flock of starlings (probably) were pecking at the ground in a neighbor yard, and then all swooping in a bunch up to the telephone wires above, over and over. Every part of the process had small mysteries attached. Birds swooping in flocks and fish swimming in schools are beautiful to watch. They are also somehow goofy looking and make a watcher want to laugh.

The starlings all swooped up to the wire, sat a short amount of time, swooped down to the ground pecking again. I was counting one blue mountain two blue mountain three blue mountain. They moved on to the next front yard, then one more along. It probably wasn’t seeds or bread spread out for them. Rain has been starting and stopping the last several days. (Worms?) Well, for weeks really. (Maybe not worms.) No cats were visible sneaking up sidewalks toward the birds. They were staying about 5 to 18 seconds up on the wire, about 8 to 30 seconds on the ground, but it varied quite a bit. A big fat crow or 2 got interested and went marching over toward them (not flying! Walking. Sheesh. The smaller birds ignored the crows.)

At church we all sit through most of the hour but stand for the hymns and the scientific statement of being. Sometimes people get faked out and stand earlier than they mean to, and have to decide whether to sit back down or keep standing waiting for the hymn to start. Why do we stand up to sing? I mean what is the logic of the custom? Do we sing better standing up? (Well.... never mind on what I have to say about that, for 2 nice reasons.) The flock suddenly flew off up the street and I threw the things in my hand into the nearby wastebasket including a Canadian penny that I forgot I was holding, meaning to go throw it out the front door, before stopping to stare at birds out the teeny window on the top of the door.