Tubac Hummer by Mary P Williams
When the first rays of light reveal a ghostly world I sneak quietly out the Tubac Country Inn door and step down to a desert landscape. Next to me is a towering cactus plant with gobs of spider webs strung between its long, sharp thorns. Formidable is the term that leaps to mind.
Standing still I gaze at a spiderweb with tiny insects trapped in the web. Suddenly, a whirring noise by my ear and a flash as a hummingbird hovers inches from my nose. He darts forward, seizes an insect from the web, and eats it. I am astonished and stay still as a stone. He then proceeds to pluck the insects the spider caught during the night from the web, one by one, and delicately snack on them. When that web is cleared he moves to the next, and then the next.
The spider is invisible and does not rush forth to defend his breakfast … perhaps wisely, as he might also look tasty to the hummer. At a minute movement from me the flashing jewel is gone and I am left in wonderment … I did not know that hummingbirds were insectivores … I thought they lived exclusively on honey and nectar from wildflowers.
This is a marvelous morning and it is dedicated to Mark D’Avignon who travels his Zen Path with grace.
Mary P Williams 
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