LETTER 2: A Nature Packed Week of Many Wondrous Adventures

This week I saved a hummingbird with my friend Matt and we filmed the whole process! The full story is below and the link to the video we created is above…just click the image! You should most certainly read through the whole story before watching the video as I have many fun details that were not added/displayed in the video and I am working on my story-telling. Hope y’all enjoy!

On Tuesday, I was invited to go to the local elementary school to bring in & teach the kids about my Monarch Butterflies! I am so thankful for the opportunity to share something that brings me excitement and educate the youth on a critical element of Nature…the butterflies. The students were ecstatic, asking me an array of questions ranging from how do butterflies fly to where they get their color from! We were even able to see one emerge from its chrysalis in real time! The school now started up their own Monarch butterfly raising cage and I supplied them with 3 caterpillars and some milkweed!

Thursday I attended an Innovation Night event my high school hosted and invited me to to show off the butterflies. The turnout & consistent excitement was overwhelming as I didn't know what I was walking in to (hundreds of energy-filled parents & kids interested in learning)…but in the best of ways! I know I am beginning to find my path as one who teaches & passes on good information, connecting the current world with the natural world through interest based learning!

I also volunteered at our local arboretum (where we saved the hummer) twice this week to help unload plants for their upcoming plant sale. If you can make it, the plant sale is Saturday October 4th from 9am-2pm and Sunday October 5th from 10am-2pm. They will have a wide selection of native plants, flowers, and trees for purchase at the most reasonable of prices!

Lastly, I sat and had a conversation with Butterfly Expert Dr. Gary Noel Ross this morning. I recorded it all and am working on putting it together into a video for all to watch! I’ll send an announcement out when it is available to watch under Releases in one of the next two newsletters…this is a conversation you SERIOUSLY don’t want to miss!!!

THE HUMMINGBIRD RESCUE

We rescued a hummingbird at LSU’s Hilltop Arboretum❕My friend Mattt called me during his lunch break inviting me to go look at the bees with him at the Hilltop Arboretum on Highland and, just finishing lunch myself, I told him I was putting on my shoes & on the way.

As I turned the door handle to leave my house, he FaceTimes me with an expressive look signaling urgency! Before I was able to even utter an opening remark, he began telling me that a hummingbird was stuck in the canopy at the arboretum & we needed to save it!

Having previously seen a hummingbird fooled by the translucent covering when I hosted a listening party for one of my mixtapes there, I knew the situation & what had to be done! I told him I had an idea and was gathering the needed items and heading his way, then click the end call button as I tossed on my shoes and scurried to my barn. I collected a 12 foot tall stick of Mississippi driftwood, the ladder I pulled out from a nearby cypress pond with my custom grappling hook, & an old fishing net that was used to scoop debris from my once flowing backyard pond. I stuff the items in my 4runner and went on my way.

We assembled the Hummingbird Catcher 3000 with the selected items using duct tape I always keep in my car (BTW you should always keep duct tape in your car you’ll never know when you need it!). For about 40 minutes we swung and swiped as the Hummer dove, ducked, dipped, and dodged our makeshift capture device.

After finally being worn out from the energy-intensive evading, the Hummer stopped to rest on the frame of the net, to which I swiftly lowered the Hummingbird Catcher 3000 & our “caught” hummingbird down towards the ground with Matt’s guidance. As the Hummer came within arm reach, I extended my arm then hand and slowly covered her, making sure she wouldn’t evade rescue again. We brought the net & our new friend down to the ground, pried off her toes from gripping the net, and began feeding her sugar water.

Once her beak touched the water, her tongue shot out & began drinking the sweet nectar needed for her next adventure. Once she began fluttering her wings, we knew it was time to release it! We went far down the nature boardwalk away from the location of her recent entrapment (as Matt suggested we do so we don’t repeat the whole process), and I opened my hand.

She sat there, finishing her recharge, and as soon as Matt got two swipes in with his finger to pet her, she took off back into the wild happy, healthy, & relived to be free!

Special thanks to Tara and Amy at LSU’s Hilltop Arboretum for allowing us to try our makeshift capture methods, supporting in the rescue, and maintaining the wonderful nature-preserved property we can all go enjoy on Highland Road!

Thank you to Matt for being such a caring naturalist himself and always being eager to help nature as we embark on our many adventures.

The Hilltop Arboretum is open to the public every day from dawn to dusk! It offers a quick escape from the city life and an easy access to our natural world right in the heart of Baton Rouge. They host educational nature classes there regularly & are having their Annual Plant Sale Saturday October 4th from 9am-2pm & Sunday October 5th from 10am-2pm!

11855 Highland Road, Oak Hills Place, LA 70810

This was quite the special bonding-with-nature experience. If you have any similar stories, I would love to hear them - email me at [email protected]! Continue getting outside and interacting with nature, noticing the potential magical moments that make life exciting! All the best, SOLEAUX