Loving the unlovely

I was watching an animal planet doco about birds, and it showed some cuckoos putting eggs in other birds nest and the mother birds raise these chicks as their own, even when they look nothing like their mothers. Do they not realise or they just assume they aretheir own chicks? Or would they kick them out if they did.

I dont know of the cuckoos ever miss their own chicks or they are just lazy!

What about us? do we only raise children who look more like us or do have a big enough heart to raise anybody's children.
do we palm out own children off to others or we really do need a break sometimes?

what if our 'chicks' get sick or a broken wing or arent as healthy as the others, do we ignore them, and only look after the strong ones, the 'perfect' ones? Or the ones that look like models, and kick the 'ugly' ones out, making them feel worthless?

Lanolin, Just as Jesus took us under His wings & provides us with His tender loving care, we are to do likewise in loving the unlovable, different, hurting, lame. That's a beautiful descriptive post you shared with a profound message!

I've seen that documentary.

The birds who put their eggs in the host bird's nest are called Cowbirds and they are doing that as a survival technique. They are called brood parasites, but they don't always do it. They are more prone to doing it when times are tough like during a drought or famine. They don't have any clear rules, sometimes they just lay their eggs regardless.

By distributing their eggs to various nests they increase the likelihood that more members of their species will survive to reach adulthood.

The intrusive hatchling is often bigger and stronger than the host bird's hatchling. They usually force the smaller hatchling out of the nest, right over the side, and onto the ground. They do this so there is less competition for food resources.

interesting maybe the cowbirds just cant afford to build their own nests (like humans cant afford to buy their own homes, or got nowhere to build them) . It was very strange to see the hatchlings grow bigger than their adopted mothers. And then the hatchlings kicking out the other smaller ones that were already there.

it made me think why there has to be such a lolly scramble for resources, I never thought resources were infinite but obviously you do what you do to survive. and it affects BOTH rich and poor alike, rich might complain theres too many poor people to look after, and how it disrupts THEIR comfortable lives, and poor people just need to do whatver it takes to survive, even if it means intruding on those who already have.

God has been described as like a mother hen in the Bible. I think both mothers (the adopted mother and the parasite mother) do what they can for their offspring, the only shocking thing is the sibling rivalry that then takes place between the foundlings and the legit offspring. You wish there was room for all and they didnt have to compete.