Yellow-rumped Warbler : My Cup Runneth Over
Yellow-rumped Warbler
This is a Yellow-rumped Warbler. She’s part of a large flock that’s recently made its way here. These birds thrive across nearly all of North and Central America. It’s a stunningly large and varied range, from boreal forests to arid hills to coastal plains. Doubtless much of their evolutionary success is owed to the diversity of their diet. They’re considered the most versatile eaters of all the warblers and have been observed snatching insects out of the air like a flycatcher, foraging for berries, and even stealing a meal out of a spiderweb. The flock I watched was in a rich bush where they found a feast of fruits. This photo shows a bird literally surrounded by the food she wanted. It was quite an affecting scene of abundance.
“My cup runneth over.” This image from Psalm 23 is one of the most powerful and beautiful in all of sacred literature. King David acknowledges his surfeit of blessings and joy that exceeds the constraints of any container. Traditionally, we have the equally beautiful custom of filling our kiddush wine cup until it overflows, symbolizing our thankfulness and hopes for continued blessing in our lives. Reciting this Psalm, with its emphasis on joy and presence, at funerals is intended to provide comfort to the mourners, reminding them in their deepest sorrow that joy still abounds from God’s love and protection. Abundance, at the very nadir of loss, also has a lesson to teach us about our power in life. This Psalm is a profound affirmation.
Where do we find joy in our lives? More precisely: do we define for ourselves what constitutes abundance, or do we allow ourselves to be led by others? There are enormous industries designed to shape our sense of happiness. They offer a new widget, a new politician, a new fad to cure what ails us. But what if what we need - genuinely need - is already in us? From the moment of our creation! Can we instead look inward to find our blessings and the Source of our joy? Regardless of externalities, the existence of abundance is up to us - only - to choose. The Warblers create abundance from their inherent resilience and adaptability. May we cultivate those same qualities in ourselves and so too see our cups runneth over.