Today was one of those days…you know, the kind where your car starts beeping and flashing strange symbols on your dash because your coolant is leaking out and your spouse has to come and rescue you from the side of the road and you’re wondering if your going to have to get a new car when you just had to replace your son’s car a couple of weeks ago and your dryer has been randomly shutting off and college tuition is increasing and your dog needs arthritis medicine and…yeah… one of those days.  Anyway, around 3:00 this afternoon I needed to take a deep breath and remind myself that God has not stepped off His throne, and that material stuff is, well, just material stuff, so I headed to the deck to get my perspective back on track.

While I was out there (breathe in…breathe out…right fellow Karate Kid fans?) I saw a lovely Eastern Phoebe in the side yard.  She (or perhaps he) spent several moments getting a drink, and then landed on the neighbor’s fence.

After I had snapped a few photos, I turned around to find a male Purple Finch in the nearest Dogwood.  These guys are often confused with House Finches.  Both birds have raspberry colored heads and breast streaks, but the House Finch has more brown on his breast.

I didn’t get a great picture, but I’ll post a couple anyway.

Here is a picture of a House Finch I took awhile back so you can see the difference.

There is something about being outside, surrounded by the birds and the beauty of nature, that makes it hard for my soul to stay stressed.  I look around, and can rest in knowing that the One who created and sustains such a glorious creation is perfectly capable of handling the details of my life.  Ah…breathe in…breathe out…don’t forget to breathe, it’s very important.