Happy 'versary!

Yesterday was my 37.66th wedding anniversary. It was 37 years and 8 months since Vic and I got married. 🙂

One of our little love rituals was saying "happy 'versary" on the 13th of every month. It wasn't an anniversary, so we didn't say that, but we wanted to say something. Vic, of course, is the one who came up with the simple 'versary. My suggestion was monthiversary, which, I'll admit, was a mouthful.

Today I was telling a friend of mine about this tradition, which she thought was adorable (and let's face it—it was 😉). As we were chatting, a dove flew into my porch area and landed on a porch post.

You may remember that the day Vic passed away, a hummingbird visited me, and we decided that it was Vic telling me that he was on the other side and he was OK. I've seen a fair number of hummingbirds over the years, but last year, I started seeing other birds in unusual locations. Flocks of geese flew low over my house—and I didn't remember that happening in previous years because there isn't really a goose-friendly body of water nearby. There was often a lone goose off to the side, so I decided that was Vic. Then a single great blue heron flew over one day—Vic. And one afternoon, a hawk landed on my porch railing and stayed just long enough for me to take a picture. Again, Vic. And I thought, why would he remain a hummingbird when he could try out other winged creatures? He loved geese and herons and hawks!

So ... the dove was Vic. He also loved doves. And the friend I was talking to at the time said, "He's here to tell you happy 'versary!" And I thought she was right, because that dove was cooing up a storm!

That's when ... ANOTHER DOVE SHOWED UP. AND LANDED ON MY PUTEKETEKE! (You can read about my puteketeke here, in the "February" section, if you're interested.)

(I included two pictures because I thought the dove's expression was so cute on both. But only the second one was professionally edited by my sweet nephew, so that's why it looks so much better. 😊 Click on either or both to see them full size.)

I think she came because the first dove was calling to her to determine whether he had picked out a good nesting site. (It is. I've had many a nesting bird on my porch posts.)

Soooooo yeah. Those doves weren't Vic. If he did find another soul to he wanted to partner up with, it is unlikely it would be one that wanted to nest. But I do think he gave those doves my address and said, "Hey, she would love to have you. She'd leave you alone except for the stray picture every now and then, and she'd keep you safe. Oh, and when you go check it out, tell her I said 'happy 'versary'!"

Happy 'versary, Love. See you next month. 💞