What is Casa de Pajaro

There is this house on the Feather River that has been in my family for over a half century. The house is on the old Henry Bird property, so I've dubbed the property Casa de Pajaro; the "Bird House". For so many reasons the name seems appropriate to me. My father spent hours watching the birds in the bird bath outside of the dining room window. He liked to call a group of bathing birds a spa party. There is always an owl living in the cedar tree above the old shop and black hawks that circle the orchard in search of their next meal.

Animals abound on the property. I brought with me a scrawny black cat named Olive, but she's not the only feline on the property. There are three other cats that visit daily. A timid calico, a grey and white alpha tom cat and a shaggy black and white cat who has taken particular interest in Olive. There are also deer, a doe a two fawn. The doe looks at me so inquisitively and won't run unless I really get too close. Moreover there are squirrels, skunk, raccoon, opossum, and numerous reptiles, plus the horses and dogs on the property to the south and the chickens to the north.

Most of the time there are no other humans here and it can be lonely. With all the life abounding around me, I can still feel very alone.