The Goodness of People

Northern Wheatear

I first thought to title this Wheatear Revisited. Then I realized it’s a story not so much about birds, the Northern Wheatear specifically, but about people and kindness.
Anyone serious (and I’m not sure how to define that) about birding, serious enough to jump in a car and chase 10 miles or 1000 miles to see a rare bird, has been the recipient of the largess of others—often non-birders.
Birders have a network, now even more intense with current technology, to alert likeminded people of the appearance of something special. Over the years, the birds I’ve chased—some successfully, some not—have always appeared to be doing their normal bird thing. The humans on the scene of the sighting, typically act a bit goofy, myself included I suppose. We birders are an easily excited lot. The homeowner who must put up with hoards of people, some inconsiderate of property, typically seem a bit shell shocked.
All of which brings me back around to the Northern Wheatear of this past September, a letter we received today from Emery Yoder—the Amish farmer whose farm the bird chose to visit, and the goodness of people. Mr. Yoder and his family hosted more than 600 birders from all over the country who flocked to his farm to see the Northern Wheatear. The family was gracious beyond the call of duty.
As we were leaving that day, Susan began talking gardening with the young man. The end of that story is we, and many others, walked away with delicious tomatoes, the likes of which never make it to the market, as well as a large bag of grapes. Mr. Yoder accepted money for his produce, however, it seemed that he was not sure what to charge.
Susan made a terrific grape pie the following day and sent a thank you note off to the Yoder family, not only for allowing us to disrupt their daily life, but for the great grapes and tomatoes. She mentioned, if he knew of any farmers in his area who might have Barn Owls, we’d love to get the location. We’ve both seen Barn Owls elsewhere, however, we’d like to see this elusive and threatened species here in Ohio.
Fast forward about a month to today. We received a handwritten letter from Mr. Yoder, still high on the stir created by the sighting of a special bird. His two-page note contained a wonderful grape pie recipe, along with a map and directions to a farmer friend of his who has barn owls and enjoys the visits of birders.
As Susan said, his note is a treasure.
When the daily news overwhelms you with atrocities humans inflict upon one another, think about plain people like the Yoders, and what the ramifications of a little kindness might be. And it started with a bird.


Northern Wheatear