If you’re a regular reader, you probably know that I’ve been feeding a small group of crows here at my house in Locke’s Mills throughout the fall, winter, and spring for a few years now. They usually appear in the tops of our trees shortly after daybreak, looking for breakfast, and when I hear them, I bring out an enticing mixture of peanut butter, suet, birdseed, wildlife peanuts, and dry cat food and scatter it on the ground in the same place each time. There are usually between two and four of them. I don’t know this for sure, but since the usual lifespan of a wild crow is seven to eight years, I assume I’ve been feeding the same ones for a while.
On Monday afternoon I happened to look out to see a solitary crow walking around in the spot where I scatter the food, and when I looked more closely, I could see that it had a broken beak, with most of the top part of its beak entirely missing. When I took it out some food, it hopped away but didn’t fly off, and as soon as I went back inside, it came right over and started eating. Instead of pecking straight down on the food, it would tip its head to the side and use the bottom part of its beak to scoop it up, but it seemed to be managing okay. A couple of times, it scooped up a sizable chunk of food and flew off to a tree branch to eat it, so I could see that it was able to fly.
I haven’t seen it again since Monday, but I’ve been thinking about it a lot, and hoping it’s able to survive. I emailed Avian Haven, the bird rehab in Freedom, to ask what, if anything, I could do to improve its chances, and got a nice email back from a rehabber named Laura. She said it was a good sign that the crow had figured out a way to eat, and added that if it started to show signs that it was suffering, it could be brought to them, but it would need to be euthanized. I plan to keep an eye out for it, bring out extra food, when and if it makes another appearance, and hope for the best.
It’s hard to believe it’s already November, and the holidays are coming up fast. Here are some events taking place in the next few weeks.
Saturday, November 8, from 5-10 a.m. at the American Legion Jackson-Silver Post 68, 595 Gore Road, Locke’s Mills: Hunters Breakfast, held in honor of the late Les Bell of Rumford. Les, who passed away on September 29, was a 21-year Air Force veteran and a seasonal camper in Greenwood and was active in the Post. The menu will feature baked beans, eggs, bacon, biscuits, pancakes, sausage, juice, and coffee, all prepared by the talented cooks of the Post 68 Canteen Kitchen. The cost for this sumptuous breakfast is a donation in whatever amount you feel it is worth, and it sounds as if no one will be leaving hungry!
Tuesday, November 11, at 10 a.m. at the American Legion Jackson-Silver Post: Post Commander William Bickford will conduct the annual Veterans Day ceremony, which this year will commemorate the 250th anniversary of the founding of the U.S. Marine Corps. Semper Fi! There will also be a special remembrance of three Post members who have recently passed away. The doors will open at 9:30 a.m. and there is plenty of parking and comfortable space inside.
Saturday, November 22, at 2 p.m. at the Andover Public Library, 46 Church Street in Andover: I’ll be reading from and discussing my family memoir, Just Like Glass. I hope to see lots of familiar faces there! Libraries in Andover, Bethel, and Bryant Pond all have copies of the book to loan if you haven’t read it, and would like to before coming to the program. It’s also available for purchase from the Museum Shop of the Bethel Historical Society, True North, the Greenwood Town Office, Sherman’s Books, Bridgton Books, and Amazon, and from bookshop.org, where every purchase you make supports local independent bookstores.
Saturday, December 6, from 12-5 p.m. at the Museums of the Bethel Historical Society, 10 and 14 Broad Street, Bethel: “Christmas at the Mason House” and Holiday Open House and Bake Sale. One of the most popular annual happenings at MBHS, the event will feature candlelit tours of the Mason House, decorated for the holidays in 19th century style, with seasonal music performed by fiddler Monica Mann and friends and harpist Conni St. Pierre. Next door at the Robinson House, the Museum Shop will be open with plenty of unique gift ideas and homemade breads, pies, cookies, and other holiday treats. The event is free, but donations are welcome.
Sunday, December 7, at 2 p.m. at the First Universalist Church of West Paris: The Oxford Hills Ukulele Group will lead a Christmas carol sing-along to get everyone into the spirit of Christmas. This is a popular event that the church has hosted in the past, and always lots of fun.
The Greenwood Farmers’ Market at the old Town Hall on Main Street will be held from 4-6 p.m. on Friday, November 14, and Friday, December 12. The Holiday Wonderland, in the former office space to the left of the entry, will be available for people to “free-shop” for holiday décor during the market. This space is for distribution only, but if you have holiday items to donate, you can contact Lynn by email at cobblynn12@gmail.com or leave a message for her at the Greenwood Town Office, 207-875-2773.
Recently, when I have time, I’ve been trying to make some progress on a novel I started writing a number of years ago. The first draft is probably about three-quarters done, but I’ve been finding it somewhat daunting to tackle a book-length project after writing mostly shorter pieces since finishing Just Like Glass last year.
I belong to two writing groups, one that meets locally in person, and another that meets online via Zoom. Both meet monthly, and both are focused mainly on writing personal essays, often short memoir pieces. Participating in these groups not only gives me a community of fellow writers with whom to enjoy fellowship (and, in the case of the in-person group, tea and baked goods) and exchange advice and ideas, but it also forces me to exercise the writing part of my brain regularly, and holds my feet to the fire when I think maybe I should be doing something more mundane than writing, like laundry or housecleaning.
I try hard to write two different essays each month, although I sometimes cheat and use the same one for both groups. Either way, I usually end up with at least one piece of writing a month that I can post on my blog. You can find my latest post, a kind of melancholy reflection on the changing of the seasons called “I always thought there would be more time,” at the “Reflections” tab of my website, amywchapman.com.
As always, if you have news or events you’d like included here, email me at amy.w.chapman@gmail.com or call 207-890-4812.
“If men had wings and bore black feathers, few of them would be clever enough to be crows.” – Henry Ward Beecher
Breaks my heart as I sit here and worry about your crow. Please keep us updated.
Poor crow.
If any bird has the chutzpah and wit to overcome this handicap, it's probably this one. 🐦⬛ ❤️🩹 🥹