A few days ago I was in the kitchen making a cup of tea. My husband came in and stood looking out our kitchen window at our pond. I watched as his smile of enjoyment turned to a frown of concern. All of a sudden, he was pulling me over to look out the window with him.
There stuck in a very large, very powerful spider web was a frantically struggling hummingbird! We rushed out to try and rescue him. My husband took a quick second to take this picture, before pulling the struggling bird out of the web. Even though he had been pulled to safety, this tiny bird held in my husband’s hand, was far from being able to fly!
As Jerry held him, the bird was completely immobile. I don’t know whether he was so still, because he was afraid, or exhausted, or unable to move with the stickiness encasing him — or if he knew we were trying to help him. The more he had struggled initially, the more entangled he had become in the sticky web! (If you enlarge the picture, you will see the way the web had pulled feathers from him.)
My husband kept encouraging me to pull harder on the sticky web. My fingers were shaking, because I was afraid of hurting such a tiny creature, afraid of breaking a wing! Jerry said that we had to get every last bit of the web off, or the bird would be unable to fly. His fingers seemed to work better than mine at freeing him from his imprisonment. Before long, the last strands of the web were gone. My husband held him gently for one minute more in the circle of his hands, and spoke softly to him. Then lifting his hands up high, he opened them flat, and this tiny, fragile hummingbird immediately took flight — looking very strong, and very free, as he quickly disappeared from our sight!
What if we hadn’t been home, or if my husband hadn’t picked that very moment to look out our kitchen window? For that hummingbird, it was a crucial time! He would not have been able to struggle in that web for very long on his own, before exhaustion overtook him.
Each moment is so precious, so full of opportunities to create magic! Be aware. Keep your eyes, mind and heart open. You just never know when you might be given a powerful moment!
Until next time,
Linda
* Photo credit — and rescuing credit — goes to my husband, Jerry!*
Yay Jerry! and thank you, Linda, for sharing. So beautifully true, to be aware and open. We can support and strengthen each other, even sometimes when we don’t know we’re doing so. Thank you for this meaningful story and reminder!
Thanks, Robyn! So great to hear from you! I’m glad you enjoyed the post. So many people are hungry for connection. I love that all it takes is an open, caring heart, and an awareness of the opportunities that present themselves. A smile, a friendly greeting, taking a couple minutes to listen, are sometimes all it takes to support and strengthen others in a moment of need.
Linda
very true.. Just like Robyn’s song connected says.. Great picture and story
Dear “Anonymous,”
Thank you for commenting! I love Robyn’s song, and I believe so much in the power of connections — whether with people, pets, wild creatures, or nature. They all add a richness to our lives!
Linda