In a time when it is easy to be overcome by fear or worry, we want this series of blog posts to give you simple, gentle, and dynamic ways to reclaim an atmosphere of peace, joy, and wonder in your home. We can all then help shine light to the world by sharing how we are choosing beauty daily. Please join us by using the hashtag #choosingbeauty on social media.
#ChoosingBeauty – Day 23
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“Life is always a rich and steady time when you are waiting for something to happen or hatch.”
-Wilbur, Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White
“Still Life With Three Birds Nests” by Vincent van Gogh (1885)
Activities
Look: Study the picture. Notice everything you can and try to remember it. I wonder what different materials were used to build these nests. What is similar and what is different about the three nests? Close your eyes. Can you still imagine the picture? Look again. Now look away. Tell everything you remember without looking. If you like, draw a quick sketch of one of the nest.
Read: “The Fir-Tree Neighbors” Dooryard Stories by Clara Dillingham Pierson
Observe: Take a walk outdoors, earlier in the day if possible, to some place you think birds might be nesting. Are there any bushes in which you might find nests? Find a place where birds are active. Sit and watch their activity, but do not disturb them or their nests. Are the birds gathering materials or singing? What kinds of materials are they using to build their nests, and where do they get it? Where can you discover new life waiting to burst around you?
Read: “Feather or Fur” by John Becker
Listen: “Creation Song” by Fernando Ortega
Share: Do you like birds? Share any experience you have had or discoveries you have made with a bird’s nest or eggs. What are you curious about today? #choosingbeauty
More to Read and Do:
Video: “Finch Song”–Follow Finch fledglings from nest to flight!
The Boy Who Drew Birds by Jacqueline Davies
An Egg is Quiet by Diana Ashton
Wonders of Nature by Jane Werner Watson (A Little Golden Book)
“Birds” Handbook of Nature Study by Anna Botsford Comstock
©Charlotte Mason Institute 2020
