Photo and Commentary ©2023 by Robert Howson
Tuesday, August 8, 2023
Have you ever known someone who seemed to have everything going for them only to discover that perhaps they didn’t have all their bases covered? The Rose-breasted Grosbeak is something like that. Certainly it’s at the top of the class when it comes to looks, so much so that it is still commonly kept as a caged bird in its wintering range in Latin America. And unlike most other songbirds, both the male and the female sing their melodic song. So full of song is the male that he sings while flying as well as when perched. He even continues his song while incubating the eggs in the nest. But lest he endanger the well-being of the family, he is able to ventriloquize his song. Perhaps we are placing human characteristics on these birds but the mates appear to show affection for each other, touching bills as part of the courtship routine. While they are frequent cowbird hosts, they also appear to be able to distinguish this parasite’s eggs from its own, thus protecting their young from starvation.
If we were to look for a weakness, we might have to fall back on the reality that they are inferior nest builders. In fact, the nest which is constructed with help from both the male and female is so flimsy that the eggs can often be seen from below through the sparse components of the nest. And yet, despite this deficiency, every year more young hatch from these “inferior” nests.
It seems we humans almost enjoy finding what we consider to be a weakness in others, perhaps even in God. Notice Paul’s question to the Romans: “Are you, perhaps, misinterpreting God’s generosity and patient mercy towards you as weakness on his part? Don’t you realize that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?” (Romans 2:4 J.B. Phillips New Testament) Maybe we would do better to appreciate this generosity, this beauty, rather than look for imagined failings.