Doorstep observations
Do one wild thing EVERY DAY for 30 DAYS? Are you having a laugh? I can barely keep on top of whether it’s recycling or rubbish collection each week, or remember to eat my 5 a day what with all of the lockdown baking going on, let alone schedule in a wild moment every. single. day for June.
I have been enjoying eating my lunch on the front step of our terraced house though. We don’t have a back garden, so the rather overgrown patch at the front is my only wildlife sanctuary while working from home, and a nice sunbathing spot at about 1pm. It’s right next to the wheelie bin but hey, you can’t have everything!
I’ve let the hedge grow pretty wild and there are all sorts of rustlings and twitterings coming from inside. I’ve also spotted a colony of ants that have made their home near to the bottom front step; watching them work together to carry things sometimes 100 times bigger than themselves is endlessly fascinating. I wonder what it’s like inside their nest? Moria from Lord of the Rings? Or squeezing through tiny tunnels like that one time I went caving? (Never again). Do they have huge rooms filled with crisp crumbs and other bits of dropped picnic? Do they ever sleep?
You might be pretty wild without realising it…
Our street is pretty quiet now, so I often close my eyes for a moment and soak in just being outside. I can smell the roses that have somehow managed to survive my terrible care. And is it just me or do the birds seem to be louder than ever this year? Or maybe we’re just noticing them more without all the traffic? Either way, I can now pretty confidently identify a great tit and a blackbird. I’ve also marvelled at the changing colours of the blossom tree across the road: from clouds of pink to lush green leaves. I’ve never noticed that tree before.
There’s also this plant that runs riot by the front step – field forget-me-not I think - and I’ve let it go wherever it wants because the bees just LOVE it! They make me feel completely unproductive as I scroll on my phone and they zip from flower to flower, systematically visiting every one before moving onto the next plant. I’ve even spotted a bee fly which looks like a miniature hummingbird and hovers in front of the flowers with its long proboscis – something I have never seen before.
But hold on – spending a moment in nature, following an insect, listening for wildlife sounds, having a go at ID-ing bird songs, gardening (or lack of!) with wildlife in mind – these are all some of the ‘Random Acts of Wildness’ we’ll be promoting throughout June for 30 Days Wild.
Well, score! That’s five just in one lunchtime.