Lessons...

Today, I dropped off my son Elliott for his Honors Biology class study hall at Kamehameha Schools. While driving away, I noticed something small and fuzzy in the middle of a large intersection below the school chapel. As I stopped at the stop sign, I realized it was a baby Zebra Dove that must have fallen from a large tree above. There were school buses on the move this Sunday and I feared the baby bird would soon get run over sitting in the middle of the roadway. So I pulled over to the side, jumped out and not seeing any other adult birds around, or cars coming, I cupped the little frightened bird into my hand and got back into the car. I quickly realized that I had done something in which there was no turning back.

As I was looking up at the large tree, and the morning Sunlight streaming down through the canopy, I suddenly heard the Angelic voices of children singing the Doxology. "Ho'onani ka makua mau..." descended down the hill. I thought to myself, I will go to the Chapel.

I drove with one hand while talking to the bird. The bird was completely feathered, but had small wings and was clearly too young to fend for itself. I had to drive slowly, and it took me awhile to make it to the parking lot next to the Chapel. As I slowly exited the car, I saw young students walking from the Chapel and towards the cars in the parking lot. As I walked past, I fought the urge to ask them if anybody wanted to take care of a baby bird. I thought it would be too weird.

When I arrived at the Chapel, I saw Kahu Kekoa talking with a parent as two small children were running around them. In my mind, I thought, maybe they would like a little bird to care for. When I was able to speak with Kahu, the woman and children had already taken off towards the parking lot. I greeted Kahu and showed him my little bird. I told him I didn't know what to do as I couldn't take him home with me.

Kahu suggested I take her to the Biology Department and see if they wanted the bird, or if they could hold her for the Elementary School since the children there might like to take care of her. I let Kahu know that I thought that was a great suggestion. I made my way to the Biology classrooms where Elliott was studying. His teacher came out and I asked her if she or the children would like to take care of the bird that I found in the middle of the street. As I watched her expression, I knew I needed some extra convincing. So I said, "I just spoke with Kahu Kekoa at the Chapel, and he said to bring it to your classroom..." Her expression changed, and I knew that a Divine Directive helped me tremendously.

One of Elliott's classmates came out and was going into another room to take a test. The teacher said that they could try to take care of the bird and I was able to put the bird on a desk next to the girl who was taking her test. I said, "Here is your new Momma" to the bird and the girl laughed. As I tipped my hand to let the bird crawl onto the table, the bird tried desperately to stay on my hand, climbing back up and furiously flapping her little wings. I felt really bad like I was abandoning the bird. I thanked everyone and left feeling relieved like I had done my part. On the way to the car, the brightest little yellow butterfly came swooping down the hill and fluttered all around me, and then took off back up the hill. I took it as a sign that I had done the right thing. I returned to my busy day ahead of me.

When I picked up Elliott later in the day, I asked him about the bird. He said that they fed the bird a little water and bread, but they couldn't keep the bird because it was against school policy because the bird could have a disease, so they put her in a tree. Elliott said his teacher said that this was the process of natural selection and the bird probably wasn't going to survive anyway.

We were just about to drive off, and I had a sinking feeling, so I asked my two boys, do you want to try and save the bird? They both said yes. I knew there was no way their Mother would let us bring a wild bird into our home. That was a certainty. But we would worry about that later. So we got out of the car and walked over to the large tree, and there was the little bird, precariously balancing on the branch where she was placed. Shaking and trying to stay put as darkness was beginning to fall. I put my hand out and the bird quickly stumbled onto my hand. I put her in a little green tray in which I placed lots of grass that I had pulled out of the ground. She stayed there and chirped while I drove the boys home.

I had a commitment that afternoon to help someone with photographs, so I brought the baby bird with me and stopped by Petco to buy some powdered baby bird food, which was more expensive that I had anticipated, and an eye dropper. All the while driving around and talking with my new little friend. In between my photo shoots, I would check on the bird who seemed to be getting weaker and more listless. I held her from time to time, and gently stroked her head and back. I couldn't wait to get home and feed her the formula.

When I arrived home, I snuck her into the house and into the our bedroom while my wife was making dinner. The boys asked about the bird and I showed them her in her little green box. She looked even more listless. I quickly made her a formula solution and sucked it up into the eye dropper, and held her in my hand. She had a hard time holding up her head, and I put drops of the mixture on her beak and she struggled to open her mouth and suck some of it in. She tried to squeeze her clawed feet onto my fingers but very weakly. Her eyes were watery as she looked up to me, and gasping for breath here and there.

I thought to myself, this is going to be difficult. To take care of this baby bird, around the clock, when I have so much to do tonight and tomorrow and for the rest of the week. I figured I would worry about all of that later. My sons kept a close watch on the bedroom door to alert me if their Mother was approaching.

I continued to try and feed the little bird. Then in an instant, she looked up at me, with her little watery eyes, and turned her head down, letting it slowly flop over, and closed her eyes. She died right there as I held her. I almost couldn't believe it and watched her body for any signs of movement. I gently touched her here and there. No movement or signs of Life. My boys came over and looked at her. We stood there in silence. I started to gently stroke her little lifeless head, which was still warm, and smoothed her feathers back and down. As I caressed her, tears began to fall from my eyes which surprised me. I didn't want my boys to see the sadness. I surreptitiously wiped them away. I wondered if I had tried hard enough to save her. I almost felt like she was saying to me, I know I will be a huge burden on you, so thank you for what you did for me today, but I will be going now with Love. While driving today, I must have seen hundreds, if not thousands of Zebra Doves. On the roadways, in the parks, on the sidewalks. All over. Yet here was a little one that had somehow burrowed into my heart.

I explained to my boys, that sometimes in Life, you can't always change the inevitable. But unless you try, you will never know what the inevitable was. So a little bird fell from a nest today. The bird could have died in the roadway, run over by a vehicle, in utter terror. Or the bird could have died sitting on a desolate tree branch, shivering and alone in the dark. Or the bird could have died, being held by someone who loved them, who was trying to nourish and comfort them, in their last fleeting moments on Earth. And as they departed, a cascade of quiet tears, from the depths of sorrow, bathed them in unconditional Love. And in the end, that is the only thing that any of us could ask for. Whether we live a few weeks or many, many years. To depart with Love. That is a life well lived...