Me a Hummingbird and a Red Jacket

Good morning!

It’s 6:30AM and Retreat Time. I just woke up which is crazy. When was the last time that happened? 

Anyway… back to my subject: me, a humming bird, and a red jacket.

I wish you could have been here. I’m outside my room listening to the birds, enjoying the cool morning breeze, and drinking coffee (with cream) of course. When… out of nowhere… the smallest humming bird paid me a visit. It stayed and flitted… literally… about 2 inches away. I thought I had become St. Francis of Assisi and this lovely creature would surely sit on my shoulder. If its wings made noise, I would have heard it’s flutter.

This lovely creature eventually flew away…

I remained… in the moment… in the… oh my goodness, God… kind of moment.

Had I become St. Francis of Assisi? That illusion did not last long. It was nice though.

So I waited… and lingered… and without words just sat… thanking God for helping me in this unexpected way.

At some point my lightening quick mind put two and two together. I am wearing my bright red jacket! Ahhhhhh…… humming birds…. and red. Ha! This sweet humming creature was looking for nectar and got me instead.

My analytical mind kicked in to silence the moment. Was it God that sent the humming bird? Or was it a random collision of a woman on a retreat… a humming bird… and a red jacket? I let the questions go…. who cares!

All I know is that I grabbed my red jacket out of the closet that I had not worn much since I bought it 20 years ago at the St. Louis University bookstore. Today… I oddly have it on… Just in time… for me… and a humming bird… to collide on a retreat…