LET'S BE LIKE THE BIRDS

The birds outside our front door gather routinely, when the coast is clear, when the time is right, and when the birdseed is scattered across the porch for them.
 
I don't do it every day, but I will a few times a week. I take three handfuls of seed and spread it out for them.

And that's when the action really picks up.

After awhile, the news gets around - word of beak - and soon there are up to a dozen beautiful birds enjoying a feast right before our eyes. They swoop in, get some grub, stay for a time, and then bolt away. Some of the birds also feed from the small birdhouse, but as that only serves as many as three at a time, the seating is limited. Still others will stay in waiting in the nearby tree on the far side of the garden, before they get their chance to swoop in.

It's a beautiful sight.

Let's be like the birds.

These birds must have some communication system that lets the other birds know about the feast aplenty here. How else would all these birds find their way to this locale at the right time?

I guess the initial "early bird" could do its own form of "smacking," loud enough for other fine feathered friends to hear. Or perhaps there is some hormone that is released when one of their own is chowing down. I like to believe that they all have some special chirping system that alerts the rest of the clan of the day's harvest.

Perhaps this is why when I see a lone bird picking away at this gigantic mound of birdseed, I never see him looking over his shoulder to guard his most recent find. (Granted their shoulders are so freaking small.) Not once have I noticed that the lone bird's chirps dissuade any other birds from finding this gold mine, as never has this chirp been translated as "Nothing to see here. Move along. It's all good." And finally, it must be pointed out that not one bird - not one - has been found to pocket seeds uneaten or bring his own Tupperware to gather up all this extra seed for himself, and himself only.

This is why I say we would be wise to look towards these birds.

Let us take what we need, and leave the rest.

Let us know there can be enough for all.

Let us put out the call to friends, family, countrywomen and countrymen, alerting them of the harvest available to everyone.

Let us remember the tune "Proud Mary" where "people on the river are happy to give."

Let us live in abundance and prosperity - not just so we get more and more, but so that we embrace a world where everyone's needs are met.

Let us be like the birds...
 

James Anthony Ellis is a writer living in San Diego, and can be reached at www.LegacyProductions.org.