A Lesson From The Birds

I've written before about the family of Eastern Bluebirds who live on my back porch. They took up residence in a red birdhouse about a year ago and have raised several broods there. I enjoy watching them coming and going, not only because they are so beautiful but because they are so faithful and dedicated to their little family. I know the eggs have hatched when I see them flying in with juicy bugs! They swoop down into the grass and come up with grasshoppers, crickets and anything else that has legs.


Early one morning last week I saw a little guy peeking out! He knew it was time to fly the coop and discover the great outdoors. He was ready to test his wings and soar! Well, sometime during the wee hours of Saturday night, he made it out of the house. I heard the boyz barking around 2:00 am. I got up and looked outside, didn't see anything so I scolded them to be quiet and went back to bed. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary when I let them out Sunday morning. After breakfast they went back out and I noticed Elvis getting quite agitated. He and Presley like to sniff out frogs and lizards among the pot plants underneath the birdhouses. I thought nothing of it and went on about my business in the house. Later, I decided to take my second cup of coffee out on the porch and commune with nature for a while. As I stepped out the door I saw Elvis standing by his quarry.....it was a dead baby bluebird! He was wet and bloody with one wing hanging by a thread. Elvis was only doing what comes naturally but I was horrified at the thought of him eating the dead carcass. I quickly picked up the limp little body and threw it over the fence. Elvis and Presley had the most puzzled look on their faces!


Later, the parents flew to the house with breakfast, only to find it empty. I felt so sorry for them! They kept coming back, looking for their baby. All day, they came back to the house...waiting and watching. This is the empty nest syndrome at it's worst!


That evening I decided to take the house down and try to clean it out. I unscrewed the bottom and out came a years worth of nesting material. The birds had built one nest on top of the other with each new clutch of eggs. About halfway down in the layers, I found three blue eggs that had never hatched. I hung the empty house back in its place and waited to see what happened. Soon, the adults came back and went inside. They came back the next morning and evening, too. I wondered if they would rebuild and start another family. This morning I saw them taking in fresh pieces of straw!


That's the way to do it, little birds! Even though I helped them clean up the mess, they came back and started rebuilding on their own!
Like Minnie Pearl said; "God has a plan for us all, but he expects us to do our share of the work." Disasters happen, relationships go awry, we get ourselves into a mess sometimes. Whatever the case, God is always there to help us clean it up...BUT he expects us to get up, re-build and carry on!

His grace is sufficient, y'all!