Recently, I made a really interesting discovery in my upper garden. I noticed that a family of birds had taken up residence in one of the bird houses that we had on our back fence. Hmmm, now that I think about, my discovery may be way more interesting to me than some - I am an enthusiastic nature lover, and birds are a particular favorite. I'm still going to tell you though!

What fascinated me about watching this bird family was the dedication of the mama and papa birds in protecting and feeding their babies. For weeks, every time I walked up the steps into the garden to water, I would see one of the birds near the house with something in its beak. Next the birds would hop along the top of the fence until they reached the bird house. Then, I watched as they darted over and into the bird house.

Generally, the instant the parent birds saw me, they'd start noisily chirping, making a scolding sound. For several minutes, they would keep it up in earnest until eventually they figured out that I was neither planning to harm them, nor going away. Then, they would quietly get back to their task of feeding their babies.

First, one of the tiny birds with some gross bit of something would head into the bird house. A minute or so later, that bird would shoot out, and its mate would dart in. It seemed like the mama and papa birds were a tag team. There were times after one of the birds entered the house that I could hear the baby birds delicate cheeping sounds.

I was impressed with the bird family. As I watched the two birds working so hard to raise their baby birds, I was moved. Instinctively these tiny birds did what good parents are supposed to do. They protected, cared for, and raised their young. I loved seeing the birds, but, at the same time I had a wistful feeling watching them. It occurred to me that they were doing just what good parents should do instinctively. I wish it were that easy for us humans to always step up to the plate, follow our instincts and always be good parents.