Birds... It’s difficult to talk about them, because they themselves tell us about themselves. You just need to listen and watch... This is the only way to recognize them, and once you know them, you can’t help but fall in love... I once lived in a hut in a mountain forest. It was December. Above the window of my small house hung a feeder from which a flock of titmice fed. At first they were afraid to even fly up to it, but then, having gotten used to it, they all fed from it together in the morning and evening. Long cold rains began. Above, on the mountains, it was snowing, and here, below, cold drizzling rains fell continuously. The titmice stopped feeding. The third day they hid in the branches of fir trees nearby, and it was clear how wet they were and how cold they were. They huddled together on the branches, and their cold paws were painful to look at... By the evening of the third day it became very cold and down in the valley, the rain turned to snow. It fell so thickly that in a few hours it covered everything with a thick fluffy veil. By nightfall the stars appeared and frost struck. I had to continuously light a small iron stove to keep warm from the damp and cold. It was scary to even think about what the poor titmice had to endure... It was very cold and frosty at night. I no longer expected to see the unfortunate titmice. And when it began to get light, the first thing I heard was the ingenuous song of my dear titmice. There was no sadness or sadness in their voices! On the contrary, they greeted the new day with their quiet voices, in which there was so much endless patience, so much hope, joy and love that uninvited tears involuntarily welled up in my eyes... What does my patience, my perseverance and hope in God mean, compared to these holy creatures? But these are only a few days from their harsh winter months, from their entire difficult life! My dear, gentle, wise titmice, if you only knew how grateful I am to you for everything... for everything you taught me... Source: Simeon of Athos Ascent to Heaven
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru