Patience please! Another bird picture….
On an early morning walk to justify the things l like to eat (of which there are many!) I was serenaded by a mocking bird. Now, in the bird world, there are much fancier models with much more interesting colors and markings. There’s the beautiful bright yellow and black American Gold Finch, the ever present Cardinal with his beautiful deep red feathers, the Indigo Bunting, so iridescent and blue that he almost looks electric…and on and on. But on this particular morning it was the gray, some would say drab, mockingbird that caught first my ear, and then my eye.
What could be so special about a gray bird, of which there are zillions around?
Here’s the picture. This bird knew everyone’s song. She (could have been a ‘he’ but I called her ‘she’ because of her soprano voice) sang the song of the Blue Jay, and the Hawk, and a bunch of other birdsongs…she rolled through them one after the other with ease.
I’m pretty sure the way the mockingbird learns the other birds’ songs is by listening. Paying attention? Yes! Paying attention! Philippians 2:4 instructs us in this art: “Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.”
Maybe, just maybe, I should spend more time singing your song. And what if we all spend more time singing each others’ songs? Not for the sake of imitation, but for the greater cause of understanding. We are valuable to the Creator, and we are valuable to each other! Nice song you’ve got there!
Picture This 