3 Red Feathers

HOPE.

I often ask for signs.

One afternoon not too long ago, I found a beautiful blue jay feather. I brought it in and added it to my collection. I have all kinds of bird feathers I’ve picked up along the way. I’m a bird, and a sign girl.

Then it occurred to me…I don’t have any Cardinal feathers. Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a red feather on the ground. Have you? I started asking my friends if they had ever found a Cardinal feather. No one had. No one could remember seeing one either.

The crazy thing is, I have lots of Cardinals at my feeders. They are everywhere. And because ‘Cardinals appear when Angels are near’, this always gives me hope.

And Hope is an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. (Hebrews 6:19)

I wanted to find a red feather.

Lately, the things of the world are so heavy…threats of war, weather, words. I realized I wasn’t just looking for a feather, I was looking for Hope. I wanted to pick it up with my own hands, real and red, light and airy. I needed a tangible sign of Hope.

So, I started looking. On the trail, in my yard, everywhere I went I stared at the ground looking for that best dressed bird to drop me a little sign of hope.

Just one red feather, please.

And then, in my own backyard I found what I was looking for, as we so often do. Not just a little hope, but a Trinity of Hope. One, two, three, bright red feathers. When the world seems dark and hope seems distant, look within. ‘Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the Soul’ (Emily Dickinson)

Just when you need it the most, Hope will rise and flap its mighty wings with such force that we may just find its feathers. And I'd like to share mine with you.