It's the New Year, a new decade, and a new time with the beginning of the online Broad Ripple Gazette. And Right in Your Own Backyard will still offer up advice on birdfeeding, your yard, nature, gardening, and Broad Ripple today and yesterday. This year I am going to feature a bird of the month because they are citizens of our village and deserve to be known and celebrated. The Northern Cardinal will be the first bird for you to get-to-know better.

Have you ever walked in the village and seen a bright red flash in the trees? Yes, that is our very own Indiana state bird-the Northern Cardinal. The male is flashy, brilliant red while the female is a beautiful caramel, blush red bird, and they both have crests on their heads. It is fun to spot them, and you can even see them right in the city. From wooded areas, backyard feeders, and even visiting Methodist hospital, cardinals are daily visitors in every season. (Most do not migrate.)

Because the cardinal or red bird is so noticeable, the lore and legends around this species are old and rich. Special meanings and messages from loved ones who have passed are often believed to be communicated to the person spotting the cardinal. The bird can carry messages of happiness or sadness. Cardinal comes from the word "cardo" which means hinge or door. Thus, it is believed this bird is the door between the spirit world and earth. Some people say if the cardinal visits you, it is a loved one who has passed visiting you.

I have heard that people believe that sighting a cardinal means good things like good health will come your way, or renewal of life will happen, or even happiness is around the corner. They may even believe these small crested birds transfer spiritual wisdom to humans. The spiritual message can be about warmth, life, and energy.

By observing the cardinals' life in our backyard, we know they live through all seasons, build loose nests in shrubs, share in raising their young, and are monogamous. They endure all kinds of weather and conditions while staying strong and positive. Eating early in the mornings and late evenings, you can see an ardent male feeding his beloved female one seed at a time. Their vibrant red and tinges of red represent passion, energy, and blood of life. Red is the color of love, passion, and devotion. Sighting a cardinal on a drab winter day can encourage us, strengthen our endurance of a bleak winter, and flame our humanness to reconnect with nature.

It is amazing what virtues humans have assigned to the cardinal: virtue, love, responsibility, balance, romance, everlasting energy, vitality, devotion, spiritual guidance. With all these positive attributes, it does challenge us to get to know this bird, and learn to identify the male and female and even learn their song. You can attract them to your yard by feeding black oil sunflower in a feeder, and additionally you can offer seed mixes or even safflower. And if you want to add to your ornithology literary knowledge, check out Gene Stratton Porter's book, The Cardinal or Fanny Flagg's book, The Redbird Christmas. These are both about the wonderful Northern Cardinals that are abundant in Broad Ripple and the surrounding areas.