Birdsong

Once upon a time, I heard someone say ...

When you hear birdsong,

Know that you are safe,

Because birds only sing,

When the predators are away.

I have struggled these past two weeks due to some overwhelming elements of my working life, and as a result I have had no motivation to write. I have felt quite deflated and lost, wondering if this is just a phase or the warning signs that this is something I need to remove myself from.

Thursday and Friday just gone I did not leave the house due to the mental crash, moving only between my work devices to my personal ones. My plan was to spend this weekend as a couch potato, but the blue skies that greeted me this morning tore that plan away.

This morning I left my partner to sleep (he was not long home from a night shift), and laced up my walking boots. Equipped with my hedgehog travel cup full of warm coffee, I set off toward the local woodland.

There is no denying the energy of the trees. They stand with branches spread wide, ready to embrace you, to witness you, to heal you.

With a bright sun in a cool blue sky, the song of feathery inhabitants danced through the air with the elegance of snow and the joy of church bells. I had entered a place of sanctuary.

Above my head Robins, Blue Tits, Chaffinches, Sparrows, Magpies, Pigeons, Crows, and Kites went about their day as one would about a farmer's market. They leapt from branch to branch looking for places to perch or to feast or to gossip, eyeing up the last of the recent Mast Year offerings. Squirrels joined in, darting and climbing with the occasional squeak piercing through the choir. Even the cows who lived in the surrounding farm could not resist the sing along, rolling in with a low and slow 'moooooo'.

As I picked my way over fallen tress, and boggy pathways, I felt worlds away from the stresses that lurked on the device not even 2 miles from where I venture. The yell of an incoming Teams call could not break through the birdsong, and the weight of another urgent email could not crash through the branches.

I was safe. I was free.

I was reminded of my retreat to the Scottish Highlands back in September 2025, wherein our off-grid cabin was surrounded with all kinds of birds. It was the first time I had been able to see a woodpecker so close out in the wild. That holiday was one of the most grounding and rejuvenating getaways I think I've ever had. The Scottish air is infused with the strength of the mountains, the wisdom of the forests, the clarity of the lochs, and energy of its wildlife.

Sitting here, the worries of this past week feel lighter and less complicated. Albeit they will come in like a sucker punch on Monday, but for now they do not steal the peace and enjoyment of today.

I will keep Nature's song close to my heart like a soothing balm. I will remember, when I can, that as long as I give my ears to the birds I will always have their spirit.

Happy Saturday my readers, I hope you have found peace too.

Photo is from this morning's walk, and is the entrance to the woodland trail.