Page 14 - Spring 2021

“My mother and grandmothers all had beautiful gardens that they worked in,” said Michelle. “But lately, it is my father that has recently developed a love for birding like I have. Since retiring a few years back, he has really started noticing the birds in his yard.”
Michelle and her father send bird pictures to each other and like to compare sightings. He lives in Augusta, so he has different species that visit him.
“We sort of have an unspoken competition going,” Michelle said with a chuckle. “He sends me pictures of painted buntings, which I would love to have in my yard, and I will respond with a barred owl picture, which he would love to have, or something equally as exciting.”
Reeves also fondly remembers digging in the dirt with his mother and grandmother.
“Behind every good gardener is a good hole digger,” he joked.
Reeves, who is partial to the songbird Carolina wren, has built several birdhouses. Among the two dozen bird feeders they placed around the yard, the one that is just outside Michelle’s home office window is the most rewarding.
“It was such a nice escape from looking at my computer screen,” she said.
Their 13-year-old daughter, Lilly, loves to spot chickadees. Her 8-year-old sister, Kate, is partial to robins, which she likes for their
PAGE 12 | OCONEE THE MAGAZINE | SPRING 2021