Acceptance

One day while I was at school waiting for my teacher to unlock the classroom door, I looked up and saw this tree. It was in the area where the Parenting classes took place. The children were arriving one by one with their parents. Looking back at the tree I noticed how bare it was, with the branches reaching to the clouds.

The birds lit on the high branches, greeting one another with a friendly chirping noise as birds do. Then an even bigger bird, nearly three times the size of the others, landed on the nearby telephone wires. It watched as more birds began to fill the branches. Squawking at them as if she was asking to be acknowledged. The other birds continued to chirp while others merely flew away.

Pretty much like humans that are new to their surroundings or lonely, she continued to squawk, but the other birds continued with what they were doing as if they couldn't be bothered by her. Venturing closer she landed on the highest branch and continued to watch the other birds, this time she was quiet. Moving down to a lower branch she remained silent but still curious, waiting patiently.

The smaller birds began to move closer onto the same branch as the larger bird and chirped softly to her. Flittering around her, yet moving slowly and closer to their new found friend. It brought tears to my eyes as I took this as a sign of acceptance.

The classroom door opened, and I said a silent prayer for both of us. My journey as a new student at a new school, an older student that had learned through the years to be patient and observe, was just beginning. Uppermost thought in my mind when I cross the threshold every morning? The want and desire of .....acceptance.