Monday, March 19, 2018

Bird Talkers

I am in a book club put on by the University of Washington. A professor and several of his senior students come in and we discuss the previous month's read. Of Mice and Men by Steinbeck, The Things They Carried by O'Brien, and now To Kill A Mockingbird by Lee.

I like going because I feel like I get brain food. I soak up information like a sponge and I feel alive. I leave that little room feeling as if I just had a full body cleanse or just got fresh fluids. I leave supercharged.

One of my peers begins to tell this story of how his family lives nearby and sometimes he feels them so close he shouts at the fence hoping they might hear him beyond. But he shouts out to his kids anyway. 

Then be said something beautifully heartbreaking. He says he will take a little bread and quietly feed a few a Crows, Killdeers, or Finch's and give them a message to sing to his kids. He says to them "If you happen to fly over a few kids at this address please tell them I love them and I will be out soon. Sing them my love." 

Then he goes home in faith. He tells his family about what he does and then whenever they see any bird on their property they are extra careful to feed it and listen patiently to any song it might sing because they know its a song of love. 

Pretty special. I feel privileged to feel someones heart like that.

The next time I see a bird and I have an offering to trade, I may just send my love to someone. 

In honor of Marshall and his brilliant love for his family.

With Love
Jeff "Jeffebelle"

No comments: