Cedar Waxwing

Then God said, “Let the waters abound with an abundance of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the face of the firmament of the heavens.” So God created great sea creatures and every living thing that moves, with which the waters abounded, according to their kind, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.  And God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.” Genesis 1:20-22

When our wild cherry trees begin producing fruit we have the privilege of seeing flocks of cedar waxwings surrounding our home. These birds truly love the fruit of the cherry tree. They perch in our trees, hopping about the branches and limbs whilst scarfing down the cherries. Although I don’t know the songs of many birds, the high trill of the cedar waxwing is one I can identify. Sometimes in the mornings our backyard sounds like we’re living in an aviary.

The bird pictured in the photo above was unfortunate enough to fly into our dining room window. When that happens, and the bird is lying senseless on the ground, we pick it up, bring it inside and place it in a paper shopping bag. We tape open the top of the bag so that air can circulate in. We make sure the gap in the top of the bag is small enough so the bird cannot escape and fly into the room once it recovers from the window strike. Then we just leave the bird alone and see what happens.

We have used this method successfully for many years, and managed to save and release a lot of birds. Usually what happens during the first thirty minutes will determine the outcome. Most birds either totally recover or die within that time. The cedar waxwing pictured above, however, was truly the exception to the rule.

He did not recover within the first thirty minutes, but neither did he die. He just sat there looking at us when we’d peer into the bag. This went on for several hours.

He stayed overnight in the bag, and the next day appeared about the same. We took him outside and placed him in the grass. He sat looking up at his cohorts in the cherry trees, but made no effort to fly or even hop a time or two. So back into the bag he went.

After day two, we knew he had to eat something or he wouldn’t make it, so I picked him some cherries. We put him back in the grass and there he sat. I put a cherry on my finger and placed it in front of him. And he gobbled it down! We did this several more times, and he obliged by scarfing down everything we put before him.

Finally on the third day he appeared stronger but still displayed no desire to leave. We brought him outside, took the above picture, and allowed him to sit on my hand. He looked up at his flock in the surrounding trees for several minutes. Finally he looked at us, then back at his buddies in the trees. Then he lifted off and flew into the closest tree. He sat for a while longer and then mixed in with his flock. I imagine he has quite a tale to tell his family.

There are thousands of bird species in the world. Just their colors alone are stunning and vary greatly.

How did God think of all that?

All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. John 1:3.

There is only One Who fills all the requirements of this statement.

Jesus.