Maybe it is just my friends, but I have been seeing a lot of posts about birds lately. One friend posts exotic birds that are rarely seen. They are so magnificent. Many wonder if they are real birds or if she was fooled by someone posting made up pictures. Other people are posting bird pictures too.
Another friend posts pictures that she has taken herself. There is a bird bath and bird feeder next to her screened in porch. She says the birds are kind of used to seeing her and her husband there. She gets great shots because she keeps her camera handy.
If I see a bird perched as I walk along Trout Brook, they fly away before I can take my phone out of my pocket, open the camera app, aim and click. One in a while I take a good one, but mostly I miss the picture. There are bluebirds there, but they fly too quickly to capture on camera.
Maybe people simply like birds. Many people spend hours studying and looking for birds. They recognize every song they hear, they can name a bird that someone describes. They go to locations where they can sight rare birds.
But the thing is, the only person who has been posting bird pictures for years is the woman who has the bird feeder and bird bath by her screened in porch. The rest are new at it.
Perhaps people are finding new interests during the lockdown.
Perhaps they feel cooped up and birds represent a freedom they miss.
Perhaps they seek beauty; the colors and the songs fill them with joy.
In any case, birds remind us that God gives us joy through creation’s beauty.