Another Empty Nest

You thought this was going to be another story about me, didn't you?

This baby cardinal fell out of its nest on Thursday. It hopped up to Rachel's glass storm door and started cheeping at Miss Kitty who would have eaten it if she could have opened the door. All the women in the house (me, Rachel, Doro, and a pile of Doro's friends) started clucking about how we could keep it alive, in spite of the fact that it already appeared to have a broken wing.

It only lived a day and a half in our care--we aren't very good bird mothers, I guess. And while we are sad, the mama bird has been distraught, flitting nearby and singing a plaintive song. She is sad because her nest is empty.

Silly as it may sound, this little episode is a good reminder of God's care of us. Imagine being loved by a God who is big enough to notice when every little bird falls out of its nest.

Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?

Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

Honduras Flowers and Plants

OK, maybe this will finally be my last Honduras post. (By the way, the "I was there" photos are on my other website Linda's Family News, in case you didn't already know that.) Tropical flowers can be excessively beautiful. (Click the photos to see a bigger version.)





A few houses still have thatch roofs.

It was interesting to see many of these epiphytes (also called aerophytes) growing on the wires.

And this last photo is for Ma Hoyt, who lives near other corn fields.

Another Breakup

Last night my daughter broke up with her "friend." It seems there wasn't as much emotional trauma with this break up as there was with the last one. Maybe that's because she was the breaker rather than the breakee; more likely it is because she had not invested as much into this relationship as the previous one. But I think this time she will be able to honestly still be friends with him, at least I hope so. I don't know how he feels about that possibility.

I continue to pray for my two kids who are yet unmarried, that God will bring the right person to them at the right time, and that they will one day love and be loved without hesitation or doubt.

Birds I Saw in Honduras

While at Macaw Mountain in Honduras, we saw many beautiful birds, but they were in cages.

I also saw a number of other birds in the wild, including these that familiar with: red-winged blackbird, some kind of eagle, some kind of woodpecker, some kind of egret, and a northern yellow flicker.

I also saw a few more exotic birds: frigate bird, black vulture, mangrove swallow, green kingfisher, and the unmistakable white-throated magpie jay. But the most exotic bird I saw was called an oropendula. It builds the most interesting nest, a long hanging affair with up to 100 in one tree. I took this photo while on a river ride.

Creatures from Honduras

You already saw my cool spider and bat photo a couple blogs ago. Here are the rest. This first thing is call a paca.

Next is a shy hermit crab.

A moving green lizard with a blue face.

A turtle who has seen better days.

And one of a line of ants that looked like we'd better not mess with them.

Which Is Better--Ethiopia or Honduras?

Andrew and Laura seemed to be doing pretty way in various ways, but in other ways, it didn't seem like they were quite settled or happy (at least it seemed that way with Andrew). I think he is finding his job rather more work and rather more stressful than it was in Ethiopia, though the job there had its own set of issues.

I made up this list from things he said and things I observed while we were there:

Ethiopia was better in these ways:

* Level of education of the staff
* Church
* Coffee
* Personal security
* English is language of business
* Overall level of job stress

Honduras is better in these ways:

* Food
* Driving
* Fewer beggars
* General level of economy in country
* Ease of visiting family
* Internet access

Are Some Sins Worse Than Others?

Big sins with our hands.
Bigger sins with our mouths.
Biggest sins with our hearts.