Bluebird on My Shoulder

As a little girl, I saw and loved Walt Disney's Song of the South. At the time, racism was so deeply embedded as a daily norm in my life that I didn't blink at the portrayal of Uncle Remus as a stereotypical happy black servant of the Old South. Today, I know I'd be morally offended if I saw the film again.

But I still love one thing: the song "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah" with Uncle Remus and the bluebird on his shoulder:

"Zip-a-dee-doo-dah, zip-a-dee-ay
My, oh my, what a wonderful day
Plenty of sunshine headin' my way
Zip-a-dee-doo-dah, zip-a-dee-ay

"Mister Bluebird's on my shoulder
It's the truth, it's actual
Ev'rything is satisfactual
Zip-a-dee-doo-dah, zip-a-dee-ay
Wonderful feeling, wonderful day, yes sir!

"Zip-a-dee-doo-dah, zip-a-dee-ay
My, oh my, what a wonderful day
Plenty of sunshine headin' my way
Zip-a-dee-doo-dah, zip-a-dee-ay

"Mister Bluebird's on my shoulder
It's the truth, it's actual
Ev'rything is satisfactual
Zip-a-dee-doo-dah, zip-a-dee-ay
Wonderful feeling, feeling this way

"Mister Bluebird's on my shoulder
It is the truth, it's actual... huh?
Where is that bluebird? Mm-hm!
Ev'rything is satisfactual
Zip-a-dee-doo-dah, zip-a-dee-ay
Wonderful feeling, wonderful day!"

See a movie clip here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcxYwwIL5zQ

In 1948, James Baskett, the actor who played Uncle Remus, was awarded an honorary Academy Award "For his able and heart-warming characterization of Uncle Remus, friend and story teller to the children of the world, in Walt Disney's Song of the South."

I loved him and I loved the bluebird on his shoulder.

There are days when I wish he would fold me in his arms and tell me "ev'rything is satisfactual." In his absence, though, bluebirds do the same, metaphorically. They love my yard, where they spend chunks of the day sarching for worms.

My day started early this morning with a bluebird on my shoulder, and although I had to shoot his picture through a closed door, I was pleased to capture his early morning visit, promising me a "wonderful day."