It’s a good day in October that starts with fluffy clouds drifting across a blue sky, and ducklings who come scurrying out of the hoop house to greet you when you open their door.

The compost pile is breakfast for Claire and her ducklings. They bury their heads in the pile to gorge themselves on what they find.

It’s a good day in October with the beginnings of yellow maple leaves high in the trees.

For Claire and her ducklings, it’s a good day in October when I give them a generous helping of okara to gorge. It’s manners out the window for the ducklings. They use their bills to gobble so well, to dig in the earth, to slurp when they drink. It makes me want a duck bill. Humans would be so much more interesting if we all had duck bills. We could make so much more noise when we eat.

It’s good day in October that ends with a cool swim. The ducklings are making the most of their new pool. It’s long enough to paddle across, deep enough to go diving, and for ducklings, hours of fun.