“Whenever the sun shines warmly over the earth, the old males tune their pipe, and enliven the neighborhood with their song. By early April, the snows are all melting away, and nature again, in all the beauty of spring, promises happiness and abundance to the whole animal creation. Then it is that the Robin, perched on fence-stake, or the top of some detached tree of the field, gives vent to the warmth of his passion… Everyone knows the Robin and his song.”
John James Audubon
The world is full of wonders. Certain things just call us to stop, and take notice. Like birds singing.
And in spring the song of the birds can reach a kind of fever pitch. There are so many of them giving voice to the warmth of their passion—often all at the same time.
This calls us, indeed we may even say it demands us, to ask ‘why?’ Aristotle observed that the habits of non-rational animals are all connected either with reproduction and the raising of young or the acquiring of nourishment and survival. This might seem a bit disappointing. Is all this beautiful song really such a mundane matter?
But if we look a little closer I think we will find something far from mundane. Perhaps Aristotle’s deepest conviction about that the natural world is that there is always a reason. For everything. And the reasons of things are deeply inter-connected. Trees flower in spring for the sake of their own reproduction. It is no coincidence, however, that their flowering also feeds the bees, and other animals, as it also feeds our souls. At the heart of the purposiveness of nature—called teleology—is that things have reasons, and are good, in more ways than we have realized.
So why is the robin on the fence post singing? What a great question to ask this morning! Clearly something within him calls him to do so, and he, with no real choice in the matter, answers the call.
Human persons have a choice. We do not have to sing this morning. But perhaps the song of the birds is a call to us: a call to realize the even deeper reasons that we have to sing.
I wake in the morning early
And always, the very first thing,
I poke out my head and I sit up in bed
And I sing and I sing and I sing.
Rose Fyleman, ‘Singing Time’
John James Audubon (1785-1851) was a great naturalist known especially for his studies and paintings of birds. He was raised in France but moved as a teen to America, where he would spend many years observing, painting and describing our native birds.
Note: for some helpful links in order to LEARN SOME BIRDSONGS see the end of this post.
Husband, father, and professor of Philosophy. LifeCraft springs from one conviction: there is an ancient wisdom about how to live the good life in our homes, with our families; and it is worth our time to hearken to it. Let’s rediscover it together. Learn more.
As I read your thoughts a bird was singing outside. I like to think that the birds sing in praise and gratitude to their Creator, that they lift up their song on behalf of nature, for the trees can only lift up their branches, and the flowers smile and show their faces, but the song of the birds are the choirs, I often ask that my prayers be as sweet sounding to Jesus. I’m in a big city in Canada so I appreciate all the birds I hear singing and love watching them.
Clara,
I think that is a beautiful way of thinking about it. Isn’t it great how birds are happy in the city too! Thanks for sharing.
The simplicity and joy of that poem always brings tears to my eyes. I stumbled across it a few years ago in a book of poems for children. Something about it–its innocence, perhaps?–makes my heart rejoice and ache all at the same time. It also makes me remember the sweet voices of my now grown children when they were small, and it makes me thankful for my little grandchildren. Thank you for sharing it!
I’m so glad to hear you say that! I completely agree. Have you ever heard Judy Collins singing it as a childrens song? We have a collection of Judy Collins and the rendition of this poem is incredibly sweet.
I think of my youngest, who is 6, poking out his head (what a cute image), with his bed-head hair… and smiling.
No, I haven’t heard Collins singing it. I tried to find it on Youtube but couldn’t locate it. I’ll have to keep my ears open. I did find this version https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k16Uan5BW7g by a father who set the poem to music and added additional words as a prayer. I will be homeschooling my grandchildren (ages 5 and 3) in the fall and I may make it part of our morning routine.
My print version of the poem is in a collection illustrated by Eloise Wilkin. I love the way she portrays children and their world; she really captures the wonder children are born with. I have a collection of her books picked up here and there over the years and I enjoy looking through them. If you go here to Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Eloise-Wilkins-Poems-Young-Library/dp/0375804757 you can see the illustration that accompanies this poem (and a couple others).
I very much appreciate your blog and look forward to reading your thoughts every Wednesday. You have helped me in my quest to live a more human life. The new design is great too. 🙂