As I was writing about the little Blue Bird family in our back yard for the Two Happy Blog, It reminded me of the book my daughter gave me as a gift many years ago. It is called The Giving Tree by Shell Silverman. If you have not read this book, you are missing out on a good thing. You will understand my comparison when you read it as the tree gives everything he has for the child until there is nothing left to give. The Blue Bird family conducts themselves the same way. The parents build the nest, lay the eggs and keep them warm until the little ones come into the world. The father brings food to the Mrs. while she incubates the eggs. He is completely devoted to this duty. When the babies arrive, Mom and Dad feed them relentlessly, remove their waste sacks, and nourish them until they are so big they must leave the nest or be trapped inside the house. But that is not the end of the story, the teens hang around to learn from the parents and also drive them crazy! They perch on the roof begging to be fed even though they are bigger than their parents at this point and have learned to fend for themselves. The father usually gives in and feeds them a bit before tending to the new hatch lings. The parents are scraggly from their constant work and attention to their young and the young have developed into the most beautiful young Blue Birds.
Our own young are often the same. We think they have left the nest to be adults and our job is done but alas, it is never done. Some come back to roost and still need help before they can truly fly. Some never fly but you always willing to help them. It is hard being a parent no matter what era you raise your young in. Just remember that under those scrubby gray down feathers, there are beautiful ones just waiting to emerge. Just read about the Prodigal Son in the Bible. He gives his father such a heartache but when he returns, the father loves him more than before, he sees the blue feathers.
E-mail author at morethan86@yahoo.com
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