Yesterday afternoon I sat in the backyard at my parents' house and held a baby duck that hatched out last week. It was a great moment for me. I love baby ducks, and it isn't very often that I get to hold one-- about my only chance each year is at the State Fair in the poultry tent, and I hate having to fight all of the little children (I like baby ducks much more than I like children). So it's nice to know that there are six baby ducks living at my parents' house now and I have unlimited access to them. One of them is more of a yellow color than the rest, and it is so adorable! Amazingly, it really seemed to like me. I cradled it in my hand, and it got content and settled in to rest for a while.

As I sat there with the duck, I heard a noise in a nearby tree and I looked up to see a squirrel looking over at me curiously. He didn't seem afraid of me at all, and ended up climbing down the tree and examining me further.

It was an exciting experience. For just a few minutes, the only things in the world were a baby duck, a squirrel, and me.