There are some pretty laughing doves that sometimes lay eggs on our window sills. They bustle around with sticks, which gives the appearance of making a nest, but they really just scatter a few twigs, rather than building anything. The other day I saw this:
Quite an elegant gesture, isn't it? Later, I saw a dove walking toward the opposite end of the sill carrying a stick, and still later I checked and this installation was gone. I'm amused that they take such care in placing and moving the sticks, when they're not serving any structural purpose (and there are more twigs to be found on the ground - we're short on trees here, but small twigs are not hard to find.)
We are also now picking up sticks and moving on. Although we have a lot more to carry than the doves, and we spent quite a while here, it ultimately feels like this was simply the gesture of a nest. There is something transient in the air in Doha, heightened by the dust, wind, and endless construction.
Some of the last sticks that had to be packed up were the pieces of my backstrap loom. I did some last-minute weaving, to finish up a larger piece, and then dismantled my setup. I've been using this dining table to tie up to for as long as I've been backstrap weaving, so it will be another big change to find a new system.
This weaving will be finished, and a new tie-up found, when the real nesting begins.