Photo and Commentary ©2025 by Robert Howson
Tuesday, January 14, 2025
Imagine yourself in the shoes of King David. He is on the verge of handing over the reins of authority and power to his son Solomon. What can he say to motivate his heir-apparent to rule in such a way that it would meet the approval of his Lord? Perhaps it shouldn’t be surprising that David resorted to poetry to convey his message, perhaps not the vehicle you might select, but listen to his words and see if you don’t find them inspiring. “The God of Israel spoke, the Rock of Israel said to me: ‘When one rules over people in righteousness, when he rules in the fear of God, he is like the light of morning at sunrise on a cloudless morning, like the brightness after rain that brings grass from the earth.’” (II Samuel 23:3-4 NIV)
Now take these same words, at least his closing ones, and see if they might also offer a descriptive picture of the Green-crowned Brilliant, a fairly large hummingbird found in the middle and upper strata of the forests extending from Costa Rica, south through Ecuador.
In proper light the glittery shade of emerald green, along with the deeply forked tail of the male, presents an image reminiscent of “brightness after the rain”. If this poetic verbiage is too much, then maybe you’ll find a better parallel in one of its other names, the Blue-throated Flying Dolphin. As for me, I’ll stick with “Brightness or brilliance after the rain.”