If Only We Could Know

There has been some frenetic activity taking place in the yard this past week. The hummingbirds are racing around the feeders, sipping the nectar as if it were their last supper before weighing into Weight Watchers. They have had to fight a horde of bees that are bullying the birds for a taste of the sugar sweetened water that I make every few days.

People in the know about such things as hummingbird migrations inform me that the hummers are drinking up in preparation for leaving us. Soon they will be flying off to warm, southern destinations to make it through the cold weather ahead.

I have been assured that they will return next spring as they have done each year for the past eight seasons that we have lived at this location. How they know when and where to go each year is another of the wondrous mysteries of nature.

If only we humans had such insight or natural instincts. Perhaps we would make it a point to better prepare ourselves and our families for what lies ahead.

If you read the obituaries in recent weeks, you may have seen an obit for my high school classmate Jay Paulus whose death caught us all off guard. Just weeks prior, Jay and his wife Marianne attended our 50th high school class reunion from Wheeling Central Catholic.

At the event held in the school, we all remarked at how hard it was to see that we had lost 29 classmates since 1973.

Then to lose Jay so soon after that event has given us all pause to think about living each day to the fullest. Jay served many people in the community as an optician.

He was soft spoken with a sparkle in his eye that made everyone feel at home in his presence.

He had a passion for Notre Dame, boating at Seneca Lake and fun with family and friends. Above all, Jay loved his family. Nothing gave him and Marianne greater joy than being involved in the lives of their kids and grandkids.

It is that simple concept in life -- family first -- that makes it so hard for those he leaves behind. Rest easy, Jay.

Heather Ziegler can be reached via email at hziegler@theintelligencer.net.