What I learned from Coco the Cardinal

I first noticed the female cardinal around the beginning of spring. I noticed the male too...they made me think of my grandma. She LOVED the St. Louis Cardinals.

The female (ok- I named her Coco. I know I'm a little dorky 🤷🏻‍♀️) really loved our dogwood tree. She flew around it for a month or two...and then one day I noticed her bringing tiny sticks around it. She built an entire nest in a few hours and a few days later, she laid 3 eggs!

I have the perfect view of them from my kitchen window and I anxiously waited for them to hatch. Felt like FOREVER- was really only about a week and a half. Coco and Yadi (he's the dad cardinal...STL Cardinals fans will get it!) feed the babies multiple times a day.

But a few days ago, there was a bad storm...and I was REALLY worried about Coco and her babies. "Birds are of nature" said my husband.

I was almost afraid to go look- the wind was blowing so hard I was SURE the nest would be destroyed and the babies wouldn't make it.

But when I went to look, the nest was secure. Coco was protecting her three baby birds in the pouring rain and the wind. It makes me think of Psalm 91:4

"He will cover you with his feathers,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart."

..because God covers us with His feathers too. We can find refuge there- just like Coco's babies found under her wings.

The next day, the weather was beautiful and I couldn't resist peeking into the nest to see how the babies were doing. They were peacefully sleeping. They knew they were taken care of...just like we know that God takes care of us!