Watch the Birds not the News!
Watch the birds; don’t watch the news!
Why is it that you, and most likely everybody, will understand exactly what I mean by the title of this article?
We are all worried about where the world is headed. But what can we do: for the environment, against wars, conflict, poverty, waste, ignorance, apathy, neglect, hatred, discrimination, corruption, injustice, deficits?
Yes, all that is what is on the news. And it seems that that’s the only thing on the news. We have gotten used to it, I guess. And another thing is that everyone wants to present his or her own point of view, never talking about anyone else’s. Everyone is criticizing each other, putting down each other, blaming each other, insulting each other; rather than finding solutions. They say that negative news sells?
No! It’s time for a change.
Would not the world be a better place if people “needed” to start caring for each other?
Yes, just think a minute, what would happen if most people had this new need? The need to care for each other, the need to care for the less fortunate among us, the need to pay it forward, the need to do good deeds, the need to have good thoughts; every day.
This is a change that YOU can start! You can start today!
OK, that is a great idea, but it’s certainly not new. And a lot of much greater people than myself have tried to teach this principle. Most of them got shot or crucified trying.
Here is where watching birds comes in.
Bird watchers know this, but people who have not experienced it don’t.
Watching birds connects you with Nature. Song birds are especially wonderful creatures. They sing the most delightful songs, they are of such wonderful colors, they are faithful and keep on coming to greet you. They show us how wonderful and simple life can be.
Start talking about birds, and everyone has a nice thing to say and share. No argument, just simple love, amazement, interest in what nature is trying to teach us.
You will learn much more than by watching the news. People will learn to be with each other, to be happier.
When I get up in the morning, one of the first things I do is to look outside at my bird feeders. When I come home in the evening, my feathered friends are there to greet me. The 6 or seven o’clock news, forget it, I would rather be on my porch looking at the birds feasting away before the sun sets.
Try it, it will change your heart. And that is the only place where any change at all is possible, in our own hearts.
The world is not made up of countries, continents, economies, markets, etc. No, the world is made up of people and nature. It is people and nature that make up these, not the other way around.
It is the individual thoughts and acts of every single person that will change the world, not governments, not groups of any kind. It is each and everyone of us acting and thinking individually, through goodness.
Look at the birds, see how they are all together, all different species, all different colors, mostly waiting for each other’s turn to get at the seed. Picking up a piece on the ground that the others have carelessly dropped. No ones complaining, everybody is happy. The only thing we humans need to do to witness such a spectacle is to provide seeds. What a lesson we can learn by watching nature in action.
Try it for yourself, then get your neighbor to try it. It will give you something nice to talk about. Certainly better than to talk about politics or what they are talking about on the news.
Will it make the world a better place? You bet it will. One person at a time. One human heart at a time. That is the only way social change is ever possible. By the people, and for the people.
Let’s start with that! It is easy enough.
Feed the birds and they will assuredly come to you. Let them fill your hearts with joy and wonder. Talk about it. Share your experiences. You will be amazed at the joy it will bring to you. We will be amazed at the joy it brings to all of us. A world of happier people is what we all need.
Denis Malaket, MBA
President
© Brome Bird Care 2019