Birdkeeping as A Spiritual Practice

I am going raspberry picking today so am hurrying to get this post done before I head out the door.  This article from Sheila Hight in New Zealand seemed appropriate to me because it reminded me of some of the things that I discover about God in the midst of picking raspberries.  Sheila was on the Anastasis with me many years ago.  She blogs at Azalea Soup (love that name)

The other day when I was talking to a couple of women in my dreamwork group, I said that I often felt God’s presence when I was out in the aviary tending to my birds. I’ve since done some thinking about what it is that touches or comes from the godspace in me.

The first thing to enter my consciousness is the calmness and quietness entering and working within an aviary requires. Sudden movement and loud noise alarms the birds, sending them into a blind panic which can drive them into the sides of the aviary, which can, on occasions, result in death. Being in the aviary forces me to stand still, to move slowly, deliberately and with thought. I have to slow down, watch, and listen. When I do this, the birds calm, sing around me, come close, and on occasions, allow me to touch them. This is the way I imagine God would like us to approach Him, and how I  best experience His working in my life. Slow, steady, quietly, but with purpose and presence.  Read the entire article

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