If I Were...

May 1, 2022

Orange-crowned warbler, flitting through the branches. Up, down, upside down. Keen eyes spotting tiny bugs in emerging tree buds. A brief stop in an unfamiliar land on a long journey. If I were an orange-crowned warbler, would I feel courageous and resourceful?

Orange-crowned warbler

Yellow-rumped warbler, freshly adorned with bright yellow feathers and a black mask. So ostentatious compared to the muted colors of winter. Always moving with his pack. Chattering with his friends. If I were a yellow-rumped warbler, would I feel a sense of belonging? Would I show off my yellow feathers or hide just a little behind the mask?

Yellow-rumped warbler

Palm warbler, the size of a dandelion bud, hoping in and out of the tiny plants we call weeds. Jumping up, seeing a bug, grabbing it from the air. Finding the same patch every year that other palm warblers found before. If I were a palm warbler, would I know the song of the dandelions and the chickweed too?

Palm warbler

Black and white warbler, scooting up and down the tree. Poking at the bark to find bugs hidden underneath. Checking each branch just to be sure. If I were a black and white warbler, would I be methodical and focused?

Black and white warbler

Summer tanager, returning to your summer home after a journey across the Gulf of Mexico. How different Missouri must be from your tropical winter home. Wearing the colors of bright red and yellow, singing a glorious song. If I were a summer tanager would I feel as bold as the color I wear?

Female summer tanager

I wonder how these small birds perceive the world. Are they aware of their size in the grand scheme of things? Do they worry about the impending storm, climate change, habitat reduction, and whether they will find food? Does their sense of who they are lift them into the air and keep their fears at bay? Does their focus on today, this minute, this meal, this bug, this branch provide a sense of peace?

Northern parula, one of our resident summer warblers

I wonder how I would feel if I were a small songbird in spring migration. Songbird migration means lots of walks with my eyes on the bushes and the high branches of the trees, looking for brightly colored movement among the light and shadow. It’s a delightful time of discovery and an unsettling time of storms. A time of warmer weather and allergies and bugs. Isn’t this the way of things? The good with the challenging, the shadow with the light, the bright colors with the gray.

This week’s prayer: Help me remember to dance with it all and hold it lightly, like a tiny bird perched on my finger.

Male summer tanager in his stunning red

Here in the northern hemisphere it is Beltane, May Day or as my best friend sees it the proper “new year” when life is really springing forth. A number of years ago a sweet young neighbor left a hand made bag of paper “May Day” flowers on my door. I love that little gesture. A simple way to welcome the coming summer.

I love the little wildflowers that pop up everywhere in spring. How is spring (or fall) moving through your life right now?

Some storms, some rain, some sunshine