Hospitality in Unexpected Places

I was sitting outside today eating a sandwich. It was a beautiful day, and it seemed fitting to eat my lunch outdoors. As I was eating my sandwich, I noticed a bird nearby. I was about to learn a lesson in hospitality and being a good host. And about having an equally good guest.

This bird did not fly away/ It stayed nearby, and seemed unusually interested in me, while keeping a respectful distance. It caught my eye, and it kept my eye upon itself. For me, the bread of the sandwich is the wrapper, and I could spare the wrapper.

Let me digress, for a moment, to talk about the Kindred: Ancestors, Nature Spirits, and Shining Ones. Next to the Earth Mother, these are the three great groups of spirits in our world.

The Kindreds

The Ancestors are the spirits of those who have gone before. The are Ancestors of our families, they are Ancestors of our heart or hearths, and they are the spirits of those who lived in this place before us.

The Ancestors live in my memory, and I feel them by the words they have spoken and the things that have done that remain to this day. I feel them as I walk the same earth that they did.

The Shining Ones are the Gods and Goddesses, those luminous beings that have the power to alter reality and to bend the physical laws of this three-dimensional reality. We feel their magic in the world around us, but direct knowledge of them is elusive.

The Nature Spirits are the spirits, seen and unseen, which inhabit this middle realm, this natural world, around us. The bird that quickly visited to see me today, is one of those Nature Spirit. It might be better to call them a Spirit in Nature.

A Perfect Guest

The bird was the perfect guest. It presented itself and made itself known. It asked for nothing, and it demanded less. I spoke to the bird, and the acknowledgement of the guest is the proper action from a good host.

As I ate my sandwich, I had a simple thought, one that was neither revolutionary nor radical. What is I shared a small piece of bread with the bird? It seemed like an excellent idea, and I broke of a piece of bread and dropped it near – but not too near – the bird.

The bird approached the bread and worked on it for a little bit because, it was a little too large. A little too large was not an impediment to success, but merely a slight detour to it. The next piece was smaller, and it disappeared without delay.

I enjoyed sharing my bread with the bird. I have “fed the birds” before, but never with so much intention and attention as part of the endeavor. When the lunch time exchange concluded, I had given up the borders of my sandwich in exchange for good neighborly work.

By the end of the exchange – the end of my sandwich that is – another guest arrived, a larger bird this time. The new addition was easily accommodated by sharing a small bag of oyster crackers with both, and all was well.

When my sandwich was gone, the bird went on their way, and I went along on mine. I gained a new appreciation for my fellow spirits in the natural world. It was easy to be a good host. I wish I had consistently done it sooner.

My duty as a host

Not only had I fulfilled my duty as host, but the birds were ideal guests, gladly taking the offerings in the spirit of the moment. For all the things given to me as gifts from the natural world, it was only fitting that I act accordingly when given the chance.

I produced a couple of sayings about hospitality because of this work. I would like to share it with you: