A Family Place by Julie Anne Staub This article originally appeared in the March 2001 issue of Welcome Home.  Article Copyright 2001 Julie Anne Staub.  Reproduction or dissemination of this work -- or any part of it -- is expressly forbidden without the written consent of the author.

With the excitement of spring in the air, my husband and I ventured out to the garden department at Kmart and purchased a lovely hanging basket of impatiens for our little porch. It was cute and cheery and certainly brought the celebration of the season to our apartment.

Less than a week later my husband went out to water our new addition and discovered the basket had been taken over by a zealous mama bird. She had built an impressive nest, and it nestled five little eggs. She would fly away when we came out on the porch, but otherwise, she stood guard faithfully. We decided that the daily watering our climate demands for outdoor plants might jeopardize our new "neighbors," so we chalked it up as a loss and gladly gave it over to the birds.

We watched eagerly as we awaited the new life that was under way. Perhaps the fact that we’d been new parents for just a few months made us more interested in the parallel story unfolding on the porch. I was having lunch at a friend’s house one day when my husband called with the happy news—the eggs had hatched! My friend laughed at our excitement over the new additions, but we rejoiced in the wonder of birth again.

Each day we’d hold our five-month-old daughter up to the window to see the "birdies." She squealed with delight when they began to "cheep, cheep" a hello to her. Somehow they became a part of our new family, too.

Then one day we went to greet our friends and found, to our dismay, that they were gone. All the baby birds and the mama had flown on to a new adventure. We were left with a mess! The nest was falling apart, and there were droppings everywhere. Our gorgeous plant was dried out and picked apart. In fact, I am sure the neighbors wondered why we were showcasing a dead plant on our porch.

I have often thought about our short-term visitors. As an at-home mom, I have the luxury (occasionally) of time for reflection. My new journey into motherhood encompasses many emotions—anticipation, joy, frustration. I revel in the growth of my baby daughter and groan when I see my cozy "nest" strewn with toys, equipment and mess. But the birds were a gentle reminder that this time is short, and I need to count it a blessing—even the disarray.

Two weeks later we bought a new hanging plant... a fresh start! You guessed it— another family of birds took it over, and we began the adventure again. I thought of the previous dead plant, laden with droppings, and said to my husband, "I guess our place looks like a big bathroom stop for birds."

He smiled and replied, "No. They just know it’s a great place to raise a family."