Two weeks ago, I had my first cataract surgery.   It had been a long time coming.  What an amazing thing to be given clear vision just in time for the glorious colors of Spring.  On theseclear Spring days, you can see the snow covered Sierras from the farm.  There is so much snow!  After months of cloudy, rainy days it only took a little bit of sunshine for the grasses around the house to explode into action, and double in height.  Our house is a verdant hillock, the green can be seen from far down our road.  Walking by our pond, I watched an enormous heron fly in.  He settled down on the bank opposite the geese and soaked up the rays.  This time of year there are unbelievable amounts and varieties of birds flying about. I am so grateful to see the giant hawks that live in the trees behind our house.  Walking past our olive trees, I startled a flock of mourning doves.  In the evenings, Connie has spotted large owls behind the house, and we suspect there is a big nest in the poplars back there, along with the hawk nests.  We do have the owl boxes out on the farm adjacent to the orchard where you can spot plenty of owls at night.  We have a few rogue chickens that have taken up residence around the barn with Stella.  The hens have hatched quite a few chicks, and for some reason the chicks love to be close to Stella when she is in the barn.  Huge hooves and baby chicks, oy!  That might not seem like the best combination, but Stella is a gentle giant and the ultimate mother, if they get in her way she noses them over. Over the past couple of months, we have lost quite a few of our house chickens, Connie suspects it might be the owls.  Life comes and life goes, but in the meantime there is SO much to see, and I am enjoying every bit of it.  All this brought me to wonder whether we have any members who are bird watchers.  The farm in the Springtime is an amazing place to enjoy our avian friends.  As you know, members are always welcome, so if you want to come up for some bird watching, just let us know you are coming!