The Cirque de Soleil Squirrel

My youngest kitten Pan is sitting on the back of the sofa staring intently at something in the backyard. His tale whips back and forth, little chirps pop out of his mouth every few minutes, and his eyes look like he’s seen his own ghost - huge, wide, and locked on.

Like many other furry family parents, I am fascinated with what my furry child is looking at so I amble over, kneel on the sofa, and put my face next to Pan’s. “What’s up Panda boy?” I whisper.

Sammi Squirrel. Cirque de Soleil Sammi Squirrel. That’s her name.

In my backyard we have a short shepherds hook that used to hold a second smaller bird feeder, but is empty right now. Hanging about 12-15” away is the second shepherds hook end with the HUGE bird feeder chock full of bird feed the birds have abandoned due to randomly wandering community cats who have settled down under it before to wait for THEIR next meal. The wind is whipping on this colder spring morning and the bird feeder is rocking and rolling. But that’s not what Pan is looking at. On the shorter hook stands Sammi Squirrel, little feet wrapped firmly onto the curve of the hook. Sammi is eyeballing that bird feeder, leaning out as far as Sammi can go and WAITING. Sammi is a savvy little squirrel. She sits and waits until the wind dies down and the feeder stops swiveling and shimmying around and she makes her move.

Front feet grab that feeder (which by the way, weighs about twice what Sammi does with food in it), hustles it into a locked position, stuffs her little squirrely face into the trough and goes at it. Simple, right? Um, no. Sammi is still hanging onto the other hook that is 12-15” away. Sammi is now becoming Gumbi because the wind kicks back up and Sammi is stretched like taffy on a hot summer day, her tiny little belly lengthening to unpredictable and most likely uncomfortable lengths. Next question is - how will Sammi let go? Will it be a very unladylike belly flop into the grass? Will it be the swinging acrobat move where Sammi ends up being flung off the feeder or the hook by the wind and movement? Will Sammi find this annoying or will she just take it in stride?

None of the above. Sammi, over the course of a few tries learns the somersault. She stuffs her little face with as much seed as her cheeky cheeks can hold, lets go in a huff, flips over expertly (back feet still firmly on the shepherds hook) and rolls a full cycle to upright and perched. She stuck that landing like a gymnastics Olympic pro! She lands back upright in her original position, firmly gripping the bar. A perfect 10 every time!

Over the next week I find Sammi sucking down 2/3 of my bird food with her morning feeding ritual and stunts. She tries various iterations of landings but seems to like her somersault flip the best and she should - it’s perfection. I spend untold amounts of time just watching her - she’s creative, a problem solver, daring, and sassy. I can open the door to the back yard and she simply looks at me like “Seriously? You think I can’t outrun you?” This morning I noticed the bird feeder getting dangerously low and I am ready to reload that thing fully for Sammi. She’s becoming the courageous highlight at the beginning of my day. A reminder to just step up, have the courage to try stuff, and be a little flashy about it. I mean, what’s the point of getting the food if you don’t show a bit of ingenuity and make it look artsy at the same time.

My son reminds me of the Youtuber and NASA Engineer Mark Rober who set up a squirrel Olympics obstacle course to show how savvy squirrels are and how fast they can adapt to every obstacle Rober could create. I tend to think Sammi is even smarter than Rober’s little squirrel contenders, AND, she’s more elegant in her dismounts. At the end of Sammi’s big binge each day, there is the dismount. Sammi grabs her last mouthful, let’s go of the feeder, flings herself back toward the other hook landing face up to the sky and shimmies slyly back down the pole to land butt first in the cool grass. She jets off through the grass, up the back fence, along the top ledge and off to her tree somewhere.

You might wonder where I am going with this. It’s okay. Nowhere. Sammi is delightful. She’s inspiring. She’s sassy. She’s full of spunk. She’s a go getter. And she’s a bit of a fancy pants in her movement choices. She likes to show with style.

Okay, maybe not nowhere. Taking time out of my day to watch Sammi is pure unadulterated joy. I am left with nothing but a smile and some serious admiration for this little lady. Instead of wandering off or being so absorbed in my wild ride existence or being too caught up in the drama of daily crazy, I choose to watch Sammi and I am a better person for it. Sammi is presence, pure and simple. Sammi is a choice. A choice to enjoy nature and the simple beauty of each day. A choice to slow down and simply enjoy the show.

Thanks Sammi - we are refilling your feeder now…

Aprille Xxo

Any signs of Spring in your yard? Take a few minutes to enjoy the show of life as it rises up from the ground like fireworks at New Year’s. Enjoy the color show, the new life, the baby bunnies/doves/squirrels and remember that no matter what is going on in the world - these moments are precious and to be honored with your full attention.