Up from the Ashes

...to provide for those who mourn in Zion— to give them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit. They will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of YHWH, to display God’s glory. ~ Isaiah 61:3

A couple of decades ago, Ospreys were well on their way to recovering from the brink of extinction, but they had yet to take up housekeeping in Salem, Massachusetts. This was something that greatly disturbed me since they are my favorite bird and they were skipping my hometown at the time. We humans had put out the invitation. The penitent power company had erected a platform at the lead mills. Yeah, I know what you are thinking, but the estuary had been dredged and marine life was returning. Just like the discovery that DDT was responsible for the decline of these and other species, such as Bald Eagles and Peregrine Falcons, we were learning from our errors and making amends. But perhaps a bit more needed to be done for the Ospreys to return to my neighborhood.

I had read that Ospreys were more likely to start building on a manufactured nest platform if there is already a branch or stick or two on it. Thankfully, this platform was only perhaps 15 feet tall, so I started heaving sticks toward the top. Eventually a couple landed and stayed. That first year, at least one bird gave it a thought. Over time a pair started showing. And though it took a few years, eventually, Ospreys began nesting again in Salem.

Looking back, I realize that my effort was an island of connection, a small action within a larger, chaotic system, that tips it toward balance. I was connecting with my more-than-human kin in an act of hope that had the right sort of ripple effect that mattered. Just like we cannot predict which memes or videos will go viral, we should not be deterred from doing the small thing we can just because we think it won’t matter in the end. As we reflect on our humanity on this Ash Wednesday, perhaps the message we should be open to is not how insignificant we are because we all end up returning to dust. Rather, we might realize our connectivity with the creation that gives us life and receives us in death. The idea that there is only one you, tiny and fleeting as you may be, is all the more reason to celebrate the precious gift of the gifts that only you can offer.

Prayer: Breath of Life, fill us anew with the vitality of hope, that we will find every cloud’s silver lining, and be builders and repairers rising up from the ashes. Amen.