A Holiday Miracle Of Sorts: 32 Years Ago This Month, Chickadees Changed My Life – OpEd

By Bill Sherwonit

(Alaska Beacon) -- It took me decades to really notice birds, to give them my full attention. When I did finally invite them into my life at age 43, I fell deeply—and some friends might add, madly—in love with our winged and feathered neighbors, especially the little ones that swarm backyard feeders throughout Alaska’s long and harsh winters.

At the heart of my late-in-life love affair with birds are black-capped chickadees, which first gained my attention more than sixty years ago...