Big lessons in a tiny bird’s nest

Birds love to nest on a narrow perch only a few feet from our front door. I’ve tried to let them know they were not particularly welcomed but gave way once noticing mother sitting at length.

Bird watcher I am not, but neither am I a bird foe. Just don’t appreciate the accompanying product of mother and her little ones after they have cracked open to discover the real world. It’s real mess just three small steps from the door.

As I write, the little ones are trying out their wings but not away from the nest. As the five little birds grow leaps and bounds by the day, there’s something that makes you a bird watcher. Mother continues her search for food and brings the tasty morsels to five waiting, wide-opened mouths. Many lessons come by watching:

Once the mother lays her eggs, she demonstrates great patience in waiting. I’ve watched her for minutes on several occasions. She knows there will no hatching without waiting and sitting. In lie fashion, there are times when we must just sit and wait for something that is not in our timing, but set from the beginning of time.

Once broken out, the little ones are not the cutest things in the world. Though we, too, break out and discover ourselves, from the vantage of others we may not look all that impressive. In the words of Scottish poet Robert Burns ... “O wad some Power the giftie gie us

“To see oursels as ithers see us!”

Translated into English: “Oh would some power the gift give us, to see ourselves as others see us.”

Something else: as all five have grown, it’s an increasingly small nest. Not one can truly spread its wings. There’s just not enough space in a nest that was just fine for five eggs. You see, we must eventually have our space if we really want to thrive. God has given us a whole universe to spread our wings. We don’t belong in a nest forever.

Yet, it’s remarkable that come nightfall, all five have enough sense to settle down and get some rest. Several times during the night I have turned on the front porch light only to see all five sound asleep. Everyone needs rest from the tasks of feeding and being fed. Everyone needs rest from the art of learning how to live in this world. So, you there, get your rest. God built into his economy a full 24 hours of complete rest. We know it as the Sabbath or Lord’s Day. He also structured every 24 with night and day. Day, you work. Night, you rest.

Now every time I take a rather long look at the five, I know there will come a day when they just won’t be there anymore. Sad.