This story actually began about a couple of months before we left on our
vacation. Four Lineolated Parakeets (linnies) in New Brunswick were being
bullied by a larger parrot. The two males had already lost toes, and one of them
was missing a large chunk of his beak. Concerned that this might be a forerunner
to more such incidents, the lady who owned the five birds was trying to locate
someone who would be willing to adopt all four of her linnies. She was asking a
very reasonable price, and she was even willing to throw their huge, beautiful
cage in on the deal!
As linnie breeders who were looking to add two more breeding pairs, we were also
interested in helping these four keep the remainder of their toes and beaks! We
made sure to go and visit them as soon as we arrived in New Brunswick, and it
was love at first sight. Splash, the sky blue male, took to me immediately. My
older son fell in love with the cobalt blue male, Stormie. He was the one with
the hole in his beak, but he was also a splitting image of my son's own bird,
Mexico. In fact, it turned out that Stormie and Mexico are full brothers! My
youngest son immediately latched onto the green female, Skittles. She looked and
acted exactly like the green female that he had recently lost to a rare medical
condition, and, well, who wouldn't love Sky, with her bright cobalt blue head
and her independent nature??? As for my wife? She fell in love with them all!
Our only dilemma was how to get these birds back to Ontario. We were just at the
beginning of our trip and would be spending the next three weeks traveling
through New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island in a tent trailer. We didn't want
to take these wonderful creatures with us, as we knew we wouldn't be able to
provide them with a safe environment. And then there was the cage. It was BIG!
4' x 3' x 2'! No way could we fit that in our van or in our trailer! What to do?
As is our habit, we prayed about it, and sure enough, God provided the solution.
The cage could be disassembled, and to our amazement, it fit neatly down the
middle of our van, between the boxes of extra food and clothing. Even more
importantly, the owner was willing to drive the linnies, along with their cage,
to the home of a mutual friend near Shediac, New Brunswick. As this would be one
of our last stops before leaving the province, we would only have two
sight-seeing days, followed by three days of constant travel with the birds. We
had purchased two special bird-backpacks to carry them with us when we got out
of the car for gas and lunch, and we were pretty sure that we would be able to
keep them safe the rest of the way home.
And so it was that on our last day in the Shediac area, we picked up our four
new birds, and our tent trailer became an oversized aviary. The babies were
required to travel in two cat carriers while in the car, and every opportunity
to get out of these cramped quarters (remember, they were used to a 4' x 3' x 2'
cage!) was welcomed with "open wings". Letting the birds free in the trailer
also gave us the chance to get to know each other, and my boys began wearing
interestingly t-shirts. Strikes of bird droppings beautified their attire much
like the way Picasso adorned his canvasses. Maybe we could make a fortune from
these?
While traveling in the van, the linnies would sit comfortably on the perches in
their cat carriers. We decided that they must like Acadian music as much as we
did, because every time we played one of our newly-purchased CDs, the birds
would sing along! The boys were happy to hold the makeshift cages on their laps,
and though this couldn't have been very comfortable for them, they never
complained. They just seemed to enjoy being in the company of linnies again.
They did hold their books and Gameboy a bit closer to their faces than usual . .
. I wonder why???
Once safely back home, we introduced the birds to their new "siblings", and were
happy to see that they all seemed to get along well. In fact, we are expecting
eggs any day now from Mexico and Sky, as well as from Stormie and Skittles. All
the trouble was worthwhile, and now we can all rest assured that there will be
no more missing toes!
These birds may have been stressed by the fact that a larger bird was bullying
them, but their cries didn't go unheard. God was preparing the way for their
safety. We don't go to New Brunswick every year, but just when these birds
needed a new home, God worked it out that this is where we had planned to spend
our vacation. If God takes care of such tiny creatures, how much more does He
care for us! "What's the price of two or three pet canaries? Some loose change,
right? But God never overlooks a single one. And he pays even greater attention
to you, down to the last detail - even numbering the hairs on your head! So
don't be intimidated by all this bully talk. You're worth more than a million
canaries." (Luke 12:6-7 The Message)
If you are so precious to God, why worry? He has already rescued you from the
bully of sin, and if you have accepted Him into your life, then you have already
experienced this rescue personally. "We know the meaning of those words because
Jesus Christ rescued us from this evil world we're in by offering himself as a
sacrifice for our sins. God's plan is that we all experience that rescue. Glory
to God forever! Oh, yes!" (Gal 1:4-5 The Message) You can rest assured He will
come to your rescue when facing the fierce trials of life as well. "God knows
how to rescue the godly from evil trials." (2 Peter 2:9 The Message) All you
need to do is trust in Him rather than in yourselves. He is faithful!
Do you need a trip to heaven?
P. S. If you would like to see pictures of these beautiful birds, visit our
website at
http://www.lineolated.com
Rob Chaffart
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