Since before I was born, I’ve felt a special bond with all of God’s creatures. I’m sure I listened to the soothing rumble from my Mom’s big cat Abraham as he’d nestle against her growing belly, waiting for me to enter the world. I’ve always been fascinated by the way animals instinctively know what to do to survive, the knowledge God put into them when He lovingly designed them.

Over the years I’ve gotten pretty good at identifying the various birds I encounter, but I’ve never really studied them at length. It was, therefore, a total learning experience for me when a female mallard duck chose a rectangular planter on our patio to build a nest and lay her eggs last year.

This was actually the second duck nest in that box of chives. The previous year a mama duck had laid 8 beautiful eggs and tended them for weeks. Then one morning she didn’t return from her usual brief trip to the lake for food, as well as to wet her feathers so her body would moisten the eggs upon her return. There was a trail camera on the wall that sadly revealed images of an owl taking that mama in the night. We rushed the entire planter to a friend’s farm and she gently placed the eggs under a brooding chicken, but our efforts were in vain. Not one duckling hatched.

Fast forward to early Spring of 2019. When we saw a new nest being dug in that same chives planter, we considered removing it, but decided to let nature take its course. That beautiful bird returned nearly every day for the next 2 weeks, leaving behind a new egg. I counted them each day, looking for a new addition to the nest. Eventually she decided her clutch was big enough, and she stayed to begin incubating her offspring. There were 12 amazing little eggs! I’d go out there each morning during Mama’s brief trips to the lake. I’d count the eggs and take photos of the newly placed chest feathers she’d added to soften the nest. That bird really had a hold on my heart!

Then the day before Mothers Day rocked my world. In the early morning I looked out to see if Mama was taking her break so I could check the nest. But I was devastated to see a mess of eggshells, yolk and blood. I rushed out, my heart breaking for my poor little friend who’d lost her babies. As I turned to go back inside, I then saw what was left of her. My darling husband had been asleep when I screamed. He ran out and held me as I sobbed, tears streaming from his own eyes.

In my despair I was angry at God, silently yelling at Him for letting this happen again! I went into my bathroom to cry some more, apologizing for my temper, begging Him to give me the strength to deal with the mess.

In my distress I called to the Lord, I cried to my God for help. From his temple he heard my voice, my cry came before him, into his ears. — Psalm 18:6 NIV

I know He heard me. I know it was ONLY through Him that I had the strength to wash my face, get dressed and grab a box, a garbage bag and rubber gloves. I know He helped me as I gently placed Mama in the box and carried her to where my JC had dug a grave, lovingly lined with a bed of soft pine branches.

. . .though our God turned the curse into a blessing. — Nehemiah 13:2(b) NLT

Amazingly, as I cleaned up the nest, I found 4 of the eggs still intact! I had learned the year before that our new neighbor was a “bird guy” and had an incubator; so after phoning him, he brought the machine into our kitchen and taught me how to use it. For the next couple of weeks, I kept an eye on the temperature and humidity level and turned the eggs every 8 hours. I sang over them and told them how strong and brave they were. Internet articles and videos told me the hatching process usually takes 24-48 hours after the first little hole (the “pip”) appears, and it is often fatal for the duckling. I waited and I prayed…. A LOT!

In that still twilight time of the morning star on May 24th, the first baby hatched. I was shocked to hear his peeping when I walked into the kitchen a while later. We’d thought the eggs would hatch the following week. Another frantic call to our neighbor had him rush over with a heat lamp and starter feed as I readied a plastic bin for a brooding box. The second duckling hatched the following morning around 10am as I did chores. I’d seen the pip holes but my little girl was anxious to enter the world and didn’t wait for me. The third duckling had started poking holes, so I stayed there and watched for 1 hour and 45 minutes and observed him as he emerged from the cracked shell. What an amazing sight!

Most people have heard that a duckling will bond with whoever it first sees. But the imprinting process goes much deeper. These 3 bonded with my voice as I sang and spoke to them while they were incubating! A book I read later that summer described an experiment a duck breeder had done, confirming the sound imprinting theory.

I believe our Abba Father also sends out a song into the universe, and whether we realize it or not–or choose to acknowledge it nor not–we are meant to bond with Him in this way!

My fuzzy trio were a joyous handful as I spent that summer researching, observing, catching bugs for them to eat, tossing tiny bait fish into their kiddie pool and green peas and bits of cooked shrimp that sank to the bottom so they could practice feeding from the lake bed. They soon graduated to a bigger bin and then to a beautiful rabbit hutch with a feeding area and an attached little red barn to nest in. And I cleaned up after them . . . A LOT!

By late July, they were fully grown and feathered and taking short bursts of flight. Then during the first week of August the two males flew off to join a flock of mallards on the lake. I prayed for them, asking God to protect them as they entered the wild life that was intended for them. My little girl had been the first to fly off, but only briefly. As I began cleaning out their pool, tears forming in my eyes, she came bouncing up the steps, loudly quacking, and ran to my side. We tried a few more times over the next several weeks, buy my Quattro refused to go. She’d decided she wanted to be a princess, her every need taken care of with a feeling of security with the human she loves.

We’re now inching closer to the end of the year 2020, a year of unbelievable changes to the way everyone on this planet views life. A worldwide pandemic will make most people pause and reflect on the meaning of it all. If we look beyond the obvious . . . search for the SOD, which is the ancient term for the symbolic meaning hidden in Scripture and creation . . . we can find God’s presence in everything. And this has always been there, waiting for us to awaken and find Him!

Without a sound, without a word, without a voice being heard; Yet all the world can see its story. Everywhere its gospel is clearly read so all may know. — Psalm 19:3-4 TPT

Sitting back and remembering what I’ve experienced so far on this Mallard Duck Adventure, I see so many parallels to my walk with Jesus . . .

• It all began with 12 eggs in a nest. Twelve is a very significant number in the Bible. 12 tribes of Israel, 12 disciples of Christ, the 12 foundation stones for the wall of the New Jerusalem in Revelation 21, and so forth.
• There were 3 ducklings . . . a trinity! Though they were the same, they were quite different from each other. Right from the start I noticed distinct personality differences and could always tell who was who.
• There were 4 eggs placed in the incubator. Sadly, one of them never hatched. If I parallel the trio of eggs that did hatch along with the one that didn’t, I think of myself with the Trinity and my faith in Jesus Christ. (Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold the new has come! –2 Corinthians 5:17 ESV)
• Although I never did see Mama lay any of those 12 eggs, I have observed this process as my little Quattro has become quite the egg layer! I’ve watched her go through the cycle of laying eggs, brooding and molting a few times now. Her feathers are gorgeous, and I will eventually make something with the colorful collection. God always provides what we need to express our creativity; the wondrous materials He lovingly designed and created. And those eggs! I’ve baked with them. We’ve cooked food with them. My JC makes one heck of a yummy frittata. Just as Quattro provides nourishment for our bodies, Jesus provides nourishment for our souls!

That horrible morning of heart-wrenching sadness turned into an unforgettable adventure of wonder, learning, joy, service, hard work, perseverance, patience and LOVE. I am truly blessed to have gotten the opportunity to experience all of it. I am blessed to still have our little girl, sharing our home with the rest of our rescued menagerie. Most of all, I am blessed beyond words to have my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ with me always no matter what crazy curveball that life throws my way!