Paying Attention

"This is the first, wildest, and wisest thing I know, that the soul exists, and that it is built entirely out of attentiveness."

- poet Mary Oliver

I was blessed on the way to the mailbox last Tuesday...

How's that for an opening line? Actually, I found three baby "redpole" birds strewn across our driveway. This was after wild winds and heavy rains had slammed into our neighborhood. I wasn't looking for these little birds ( I was actually looking for my tax rebate!), but there they were. I spotted one, then another, and then another. Next to the last was a tiny nest.

There are few things more vulnerable looking than a baby bird. They might have been two days only. Fuzzy feathers and lots of pink skin. I got the nest and coaxed each bird into it, prodding gently with a twig (I knew touching them would leave "human smell" on them and be the kiss of death). Once in the nest, I carried them to our screened porch and set them down so they'd be able to weather the next storm.

My girls wanted to feed them, but I knew their only real chance was a reunion with mom and dad redpole. That night I placed them up in the tree they'd fallen out of and prayed they'd be found (but not by a blue jay).

What happened next? Praise God, mom and dad found them. The next morning the tree was alive with small squawks and the flutter of wings.

Mary Oliver says our souls are built out of attentiveness. Seeing, noticing, attending. A sober, somber voice within me wants to ask "how many times have you walked right by (or right over) similar situations, missing a chance to bless and be blessed." But a more Holy Voice within me says, "Tuesday you noticed and see what good it did your soul."

Still no rebate check, but every time I walk by the tree and spy those little birds, its like receiving the touch of healing oil on my soul.