Good bye Ainslie gang gangs

And tomorrow we leave.This afternoon I gave myself the gift of standing on our back balcony, watching the magic of the evening light on the gum trees of Mt Ainslie, intently studying the feathers of the calm, beautiful bird feeding from my hand. A female gang-gang, pausing only to communicate with her less confident partner up in the tree, sorted through the sunflower seeds. Occasionally she cocked one steady brown eye to look at me. No doubt wondering why I was banging on about telling her family in Albury that we'd be there if they needed a feed. I confess that quiet, grateful tears rolled down my cheeks as I thanked her and her kind for the years of delight that they had provided for us. We got to know the different pairs, welcomed batches of babies and watched them grow.Recently four character filled magpies joined the community. They would follow us into doorways and wait patiently until we went to get the food. Cocking their heads to tell us exactly where they liked it to be left. And then rewarded us with glorious birdsong. Goodness me this has been special. The rosellas, the King parrots, the kookaburras and on those wonderful occasions...the black cockatoos. We are the ultimate boring bird people eh?And now all our world goods (and holy s&%^ there seems to be a lot of them!) are packed in boxes ready to be picked up by the removalists tomorrow morning. Our season here in Canberra is over and a new season begins. So many BIG THINGS have happened while we've lived here. I journalled recently about just one room, our sun drenched lounge room, which has been the crucible, the container for so much. Held me in the good times and the tough. Times of celebration, times of despair, times of recovery, times of pain, times of revelation.And now to a new home in a new place where new discoveries await. Thank you Duffy St.PS For truly SENSATIONAL bird photos by the fabulous Charles Davis (including some of my beloved gang gangs,) head here