Five Minutes in the Garden

A new morning ritual

I've been struggling to get outside much lately due to a health problem. And I've really missed it. So I decided to take just one small action to remedy this. Every morning I have stepped outside into my garden, with the aim of just being outdoors for at least 5 minutes. The intention was to start my day with fresh air and a fresh mind, step away from the doom scrolling (or 347 cat videos) and appreciate a bit of nature to set the tone for the day.

Well, it's early spring and so my trips outside quickly became centred upon what I could hear. Loads of birds! So, of course, there's an app for that, and I used it to get an idea of what kind of birds were around my garden. The number of different species was genuinely exciting - from buzzards to Eurasian siskins; goldcrests to magpies, and the very noisy little wrens.

Knowing there was so much to see around me did actually help me to tune into my surroundings even more. So I noticed the blue tits on next door's silver birch tree. I noticed the goldcrests in the buddleia. And I repeatedly noticed the great tit who kept returning to the little bird house we have at the end of the garden.

A clear message

After a few days of being slightly over-excited by my new spring pals, I wanted to see and know more. My nature-loving mom has been a fan of birds for many years so I thought I would share this with her, and as I wrote out a text message to her saying "Mom, I think I want to be a bird-watcher" something caught my eye in the window. Not the window to the front garden where all the trees and shrubs and bird-friendly spaces are. The front window that looks out onto our small driveway and street.

Looking straight at me through the window was a great tit. Literally dancing on my window ledge and looking in! They were lucky my cats didn't notice ...

A bit about great tits

Great tits are often thought to symbolise good luck, happiness and prosperity, and I believe that in Welsh mythology they are connected to healing. I'll have to look up more about that!

They are known for being quite bold and surprisingly adaptable, but what really drew me to watching them was their display of curiosity and intelligence. They are often the first to notice and explore something new.

Noticing

So, my daily 5 minutes in the garden quickly grew into a lot more. By stepping outside with no distractions, I noticed so much. The feel of fresh air and how rejuvenating natural light can be (this may not feel quite as awakening in the winter!). But then noticing the sound of birdsong and allowing my own curiosity to explore that further. Whilst I was curiously exploring something that had always been there — but I hadn’t taken time to notice — that little great tit was busy exploring the bird house in my tree. I am really hoping they make it their home.