“Walela” (Wah-ley-lah) is the Cherokee name for hummingbird.
There is something inside the soul of all of us that wants to soar through sunbeams, then dance midair in a delicate mist, then take a simple bath on a leaf. There is something in our souls that wants to hover at beautiful moments in our lives, making them freeze in time. There is something in us that wants to fly backwards and savor once more the beautiful past. Some of us are just hummingbird people. — Animal Speak, by Ted Andrews
Meet Walela, the Allen’s Hummingbird mama who’s taken up residence in the fuchsia bush beside my front door.
She’s sheltering two hatchlings in her feather-soft nest.
And no small measure of joy.