Birds are flyin' south for winter. Here's the Weird-Bird headin' north, Wings a-flappin', beak a-chatterin', Cold head bobbin' back 'n' forth. He says, "It's not that I like ice Or freezin' winds and snowy ground. It's just sometimes it's kind of nice To be the only bird in town." (Weird-Bird, by Shel Silverstein)

Welcome to the November newsletter. I sometimes feel like the Weird Bird Shel Silverstein was talking about. Sometimes the change in weather November has for us makes me feel like the only bird in town and my beak is a-chatterin'. The bad part is that it will only get colder before it gets warmer.

ONLY BIRD IN TOWN

Have you ever felt like the only bird in town? Perhaps as a child, you found yourself sitting alone at lunch time because the other table was for the "cool kids" and you weren't seen as cool yet. You hadn't risen in the pecking order for whatever reason. Maybe it was for the silliest reason; you were the brain and they were the jocks and the two never mix. Maybe it was for the worst reason; you came from a poor family and they were the elite and felt superior for the wrong reason.

We are often made to feel like the only bird in town. Well, maybe not the only bird, but certainly the weird bird. It may happen when others see you talking to the animals in the yard and having them actually listen to you. They may think you're nuts talking to the squirrels but it's a joy to have another species trust you, I can assure you of that.

It may happen when you teach a child something you learned as a child. Blowing straw wrappers at each other in a restaurant may make you appear as the weird bird but it sure is fun to see a child laugh, especially in these times. Simple pleasures are the best stress relievers, I always say.

I believe God gave us a sense of humor to get through tough times and this world is full of tough times. I need a few eccentricities in life because, more and more I feel like the weird bird headin' north, alone with my beak a chatterin'.

I'm reminded of the Apostles and how they must have felt like the only bird in town when they spread the word of God to any one new. They were the start of a new religion and even a new way of looking at every day events. They were ridiculed, abused and stoned for their efforts.

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Matthew 28:19

Their lives were infinitely tougher than that of the child who has to sit at another lunch table because they are different and certainly tougher than those that are outcast for being eccentric. Choices we make dictate the path our lives take. We can choose to be like the next guy and fit in and quit being that "weird bird".

The Apostles were handpicked by Jesus and for the sake of argument, let's say they could have walked away and said, "No thanks, I just want to fit in and be left alone". Jesus may have let them go their own way but something inside inspired them to walk with Jesus and become the outcast. That "something" was faith and a profound belief in everything they saw on their journey with Him.

I remember a movie about Peter and Paul that vividly portrayed being the only bird in town as they were beaten and stoned everywhere they went. I know that when I was young, I was a fiery person and loved a good battle, but at my best it would have been tough and I think I would have said "enough is enough" after the first stoning.

John outlived his comrades and spent time in exile at the end of his life. The abuse that came from being the weird bird only made him stronger and as the "only bird in town" he did some powerful writing that will stand forever.

So why do so many find it so tough to openly be a Christian today? I may face law suits, dirty looks and some strong headwinds and I may be weird but I like being the only bird in town.

The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble.
Psalms 9:9

It is not only fine feathers that make fine birds.
Aesop.
Greek slave & fable author (620 BC - 560 BC)