Category: FEATURED REGULARLY

Birds are usually found in the sky, which is where they like to be. But sometimes, birds can be seen in the sand, burrowing holes in the sand, moving their small wings here and there, shaking up a small sand storm.

There was a bird named Melody. She was called Melody because she sang a lovely clear ringing melody. Melody was once flying and playing between the trees with her friends Flutter and Highnote. Flutter sang always in a fluttery, wavy voice and Highnote sang with such a high voice that all the animals in the forest would hear her. Melody, Flutter and Highnote were playing tag between the trees. Melody was “it”, and Highnote kept singing in her high voice, “Melody can’t catch me, btzrrrrr, btzrrrr, Mel can’t catch me.” And it was so hot that day, even in the covered forest, under the trees, it was all Melody could do to fly to tag Flutter and Highnote – flying kept Melody cooler because she could spread her wings. But when she was just sitting on a branch in this heat, Melody would get so hot that she would wonder if her head wouldn’t pop from the sheer heat. Luckily flying made her feel better.

Eventually Melody caught Highnote, and then Highnote became “it” and flew after Melody and Flutter, singing in her high voice, “I willllllll get you!” The three birds finally tired from flying so much and playing so much tag, but the problem was that if they stopped playing and went to rest on a branch, then they would all get so hot and then become worried that their heads would pop.

But, alas, there was no choice, eventually but to slow down and rest on the branches. “Brraaiii-brraaii-brraaii, oh, what shall we do about this heat?” flittered Flutter. “Ptsi-ptsi-ptsi,” sang Melody in return, “we have to get out of the heat,” and with that she flew from the branch onto the ground which was muddy and sandy.

Melody chose a sandy spot on the ground and started to beat her wings all around her and move around in circles, making a small sand storm. Highnote and Flutter watched her from above, wondering what she was doing. Finally when the sand cleared, Highnote and Flutter could see that Melody was burrowed deep in the sand, and was calm and no longer fidgety from the heat. “Why did you do all that?” sang Highnote. “Because,” breathed out Melody, with a sigh of relief, “because it’s cool down here.…”

Flutter and Highnote immediately flew down and went through the same ritual as had Melody moments before, throwing up a small sand storm, beating their wings about, circling in the ground, until they too were comfortably seated in the sand. It turns out that sand lower than the earth’s surface stays cool longer, much longer. Melody, Highnote, and Flutter spent the rest of the afternoon singing to each other from their small cool islands in the sand.

So, you see, it is only sometimes, but sometimes we can find birds not in the sky, but in the sand.

:) From a friend of mine who emailed this:

And here’s a quick lesson regarding attention. Yesterday I read an article on my laptop as I tied my shoes. Little did I know I’d tied the pull-string to my window blinds into my shoelaces. When I walked away I pulled the blinds up almost yanking them off. So, remember, if you tie your shoes without paying attention, the whole window treatment could come down.

“But, Mama, what if I need to get away from a bad person? How can I hide? I’m so big,” asked the Giant in a hesitant tone. He was very sad. The Giant was scared that he wouldn’t be able to hide if he needed to.

“Well,” answered Mama Giant, “there are three solutions,” and at this the Giant moved his ears closer. “You can pretend to be a tree, you can learn to run really fast, or you can look up.”

“What do you mean?” he asked for he was just a young Giant, and couldn’t follow his mother’s logic so fast.

“We are so large, my son, that we are easily the height of sycamore trees and the width of the centuries-old redwoods. The only thing you need to learn is tree posture. Tree posture is a little wiggly at the top where the thin branches are and strong and sturdy on the bottom, you think you can do that?”

“I can do that Mama.”

“Ok, then the second way to get away from a bad person is to learn to run really fast because each of your steps is twenty times the length of the bad person’s steps… so you can get away fast!”

“Ok, and what else, Mama?” “Well, look up,” and the Giant did. “What do you see?”

“The sky and some branches, and that hill over there.”

“That’s right, little one,” Mama said to the Giant. “That hill is your savior – you can walk to that hill in three steps while it would take regular people sixty steps, and then you can pull yourself up to that ledge in an instant, and roll on that hill and disappear from view!”

“Wow, thank you Mama!” and the Giant hugged his Mama, “I will work on my tree posture, and on running fast, and on lifting myself – yea! I’ll be saved from any bad people!” …and with that he closed his eyes, and took his afternoon quiet-time under the trees.

“Mommy, are elephants like dinosaurs?” asked the little boy.
“Well…what do you mean?” questioned his Mommy.

“If the dinosaurs went extinct, then aren’t there some animals that came from what the dinosaurs used to be like?”
“You mean, ‘Are there some animals that are descended from dinosaurs?’ ”
“Yes, I think. What does “descended” mean?”
“It means animals that were born from animals that were born from animals that were originally dinosaurs.”

“Yes, are elephants descended from dinosaurs, Mommy?” “Well, people don’t say that elephants are descended from dinosaurs, but there are creatures that you know that people say are descended from dinosaurs. Want a clue?” asked his Mommy. “Yes, tell me.” “Well, this is an animal that you might think is fast and can sometimes look like a small dinosaur or like a small dragon. Usually this animal has an interesting skin. The skin could be a puffy material or even more rarely scaly like an alligator. And the animal walks on short legs. This animal also comes in many, many colors.”

He thought for a moment, and said, “Alligators?” Then immediately, “Lizards?!”
“Well, people say that lizards and dinosaurs were not related even though they looked very similar to each other,” said his Mommy.
“Well, but how about an elephant? Elephants are big, they walk with very loud footsteps, and they have that interesting skin you talk about, right? Are elephants like dinosaurs?” he asked again.

“‘They’re not exactly like dinosaurs. How about something smaller?” asked his Mommy.
“But how could something smaller be descendable from dinosaurs?”
“Descended from dinosaurs,” said his Mommy.
“Descended from dinosaurs,” he repeated.
“Well, what dinosaurs do you know?”
“I know the bronotsaurus who is huge and eats only plants, and I know the TRex, who eats animals.”

“What about those theropods that look like the TRex?” asked his Mommy. “The ones that are big and eat animals?” asked the boy. “Yes.” “Ok,” said the boy. “Imagine those smaller,” said his Mommy. “Ok,” said the boy.

“What do they look like?” asked his Mommy.
“Like small dinosaurs,” said the boy.
“And how would they have moved?”
“Fast, like they didn’t like running, but still like they could run,” said the boy.
“Ok, what else moves fast on the ground?”

“Well, that’s funny! Dogs can move fast, and birds that aren’t flying can move fast.” “Ok, so let’s think about birds,” said his Mommy. “Ok.” “They’re fast?” “Yes.” “They are shaped like small dinosaurs when they stand on the ground?” asked his Mommy. “Yes.” “Could birds be descended from dinosaurs?”

“Maybe…” the boy thought for a moment, “but that’s weird.”
“Ok, it’s weird, but could it have happened?” asked his Mommy.
“Yes… a bird is a small dinosaur?”
“I’m not sure that it’s actually a small dinosaur, but it may be descended from a dinosaur!”

“So not elephants… but yes birds?… That’s good: when I see a bird, I can think of a dinosaur,” decided the boy happily.