Lunch today was sautéed shrimp and onions from the Vietnamese counter, with some lettuce and rice in a microwaveable container. I decided to eat it in one of our small meeting rooms, instead of the cafeteria.
I preferred to be alone today, because I was feeling a bit down. You know, when the weight of all your worries crashes down on you and you can’t wait for 5pm so you can go home and crawl to bed and sleep it off. You’re logging documents and it suddenly dawns on you that you have a house to run, two kids to raise, groceries to buy, bills to pay, a thesis to finish, and an argument waiting to happen. Oh, and to top it off, you’re nursing a three-day cold.
The room looks out over a portion of the office compound with a tree in it. One whole wall is glass. I can’t see any cars because I’m in the second floor, only the upper half of the tree. It’s rather soothing.
As I started eating, a little brown bird landed on the window ledge. He was carrying something that looked like a bug, and he settled down to have his lunch. I was about three feet away, separated from him by a glass pane, and I don’t know if he can see me. Or maybe he thought, Hello there, how about a lunch mate?
He pecked a little here and there, then maybe he decided he’s too hungry to be dainty, so he tried to gobble the whole thing all at once.
I paused with a forkful of shrimp, and waited to see if the bird would choke. He shook his head this way and that, and then, with a little shiver, he swallowed it whole. Then he fluffed his body, checked the ledge for crumbs--maybe he dropped a bug leg or something, ugh--and then flew back to his tree.
Well, sometimes it's the same with life’s problems. Maybe they’d seem a little too big to handle, but if you shake it up a little, and peck at it a little, it becomes manageable. And maybe it looks like you’d choke, but see, God never gave a bird a bug it can’t digest.
I had to smile a little. Maybe the little bird had problems too. Maybe his tree was a bit shaky on windy days, and twigs were always falling on his head. Maybe his kids had flown the nest, gone off to bird college or wherever it is that they learn bird lessons. Maybe he was divorced and had been looking for a nice brown chick, but he didn’t have enough worms to impress her with. But see, he has to sit down and enjoy his lunch.
Trust me to philosophize over a little bird and an unfortunate little bug. But I figured that sometimes, when the big picture overwhelms you, it helps to step back and take a look at the little pictures that makes up the whole. Ok, so I’m stressed, but I’m still wearing nice clothes and pretty shoes. I’m eating a rather expensive lunch. My daughter has recovered from the flu. When I get home, dinner will be waiting because we have someone to cook for us. There’s always some small thing to be thankful for, something that lets you believe in a better day and the promise of all that’s possible.
Oh, and one last thing? On a lonely day, you can always use some companionship, even if it’s just a little bird.
The room looks out over a portion of the office compound with a tree in it. One whole wall is glass. I can’t see any cars because I’m in the second floor, only the upper half of the tree. It’s rather soothing.
As I started eating, a little brown bird landed on the window ledge. He was carrying something that looked like a bug, and he settled down to have his lunch. I was about three feet away, separated from him by a glass pane, and I don’t know if he can see me. Or maybe he thought, Hello there, how about a lunch mate?
He pecked a little here and there, then maybe he decided he’s too hungry to be dainty, so he tried to gobble the whole thing all at once.
I paused with a forkful of shrimp, and waited to see if the bird would choke. He shook his head this way and that, and then, with a little shiver, he swallowed it whole. Then he fluffed his body, checked the ledge for crumbs--maybe he dropped a bug leg or something, ugh--and then flew back to his tree.
Well, sometimes it's the same with life’s problems. Maybe they’d seem a little too big to handle, but if you shake it up a little, and peck at it a little, it becomes manageable. And maybe it looks like you’d choke, but see, God never gave a bird a bug it can’t digest.
I had to smile a little. Maybe the little bird had problems too. Maybe his tree was a bit shaky on windy days, and twigs were always falling on his head. Maybe his kids had flown the nest, gone off to bird college or wherever it is that they learn bird lessons. Maybe he was divorced and had been looking for a nice brown chick, but he didn’t have enough worms to impress her with. But see, he has to sit down and enjoy his lunch.
Trust me to philosophize over a little bird and an unfortunate little bug. But I figured that sometimes, when the big picture overwhelms you, it helps to step back and take a look at the little pictures that makes up the whole. Ok, so I’m stressed, but I’m still wearing nice clothes and pretty shoes. I’m eating a rather expensive lunch. My daughter has recovered from the flu. When I get home, dinner will be waiting because we have someone to cook for us. There’s always some small thing to be thankful for, something that lets you believe in a better day and the promise of all that’s possible.
Oh, and one last thing? On a lonely day, you can always use some companionship, even if it’s just a little bird.
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