I suppose it was inevitable. Maria decided to study and befriend the newly born Pigeons in the corner of the barn. She got me hooked as well. We need the first one, Begonia, and the second one, Iris (above). Maria visits them and talks to them; they are comfortable with both of us now. When we enter the barn, they just sit and look at us.

They don’t mind posing for pictures at all.

Begonia is out of the next but always returns to keep Iris company. When I entered the barn to do chores this morning, five or six pigeons were sitting on one of the trash cans, visiting the two newborns. They took off when they saw me.

Maria has been studying pigeons and writing about her attachment to them. She is the most curious person I have ever known, there is very little in nature or the animal world that doesn’t draw her curiosity.

The pigeons don’t run or hide; they just stare at me. Maria talks to them and worries about Iris, who is alone in the next now. They seem to be listening.

Above, Begonia, two weeks out of the next.

She wrote a piece about pigeons, information and curiosity on her blog yesterday, and I thought it was both profound and a breakthrough for her as a writer. She’s been enlightening me about their nesting habits, incubation time, and feeding needs all week.

Soon enough, both pigeons will be gone, and I doubt we will see them again. On the other hand, I wouldn’t be too surprised if I didn’t come into the barn one day and see one of them eating grain out of her hand. It’s happened before.