Dear God,

Hello again. It's me, your daughter.

I don't know exactly how I am feeling today. Which happens a lot, as You well know. I've been having trouble sleeping lately, so maybe that's why my insides are perhaps even more muddled than usual. But I don't want to whine, this time. I think I'd like to talk about something good.

I can hear the birds singing outside my window. The dark is coming on, but still they sing. The other day, I saw the littlest bird that had the loudest voice. It was the voice that I heard first, that caught my attention. And when I turned my head to see where it was coming from, I stared, surprised. The bird was so small, I could hardly believe the brilliant sound was coming from him, but I had to believe because I was watching him as he perched with tiny beak open, ringing the world like a bell.

I have a friend who sometimes calls me Alyssa-Bird, or just Birdie. I've always liked the nickname. If I could be any animal for a day, I would be a bird. Because of how beautiful it would be to leap off a branch and stretch my wings into soaring.

I'm glad You don't mind following my digressions, God. I know You already know all these things. And I really do believe You want us to fly. If not, You wouldn't have given us the birds. All of creation is a painting that tells us more about You, and about ourselves. We are born with metaphors bleeding into our eyes, and that is how we understand the deeper things, or at least, we try to.

Flying is like falling, but backwards. It draws us upward into a waterless sea without boundary or measure, the life-giving warmth of the sun on our feathers. It is the picture that comes to mind when I think of freedom. Because it breaks the rules that tie everyone else down to Earth.

I want to break the rules. I want to fall into the sky. And keep falling, higher and deeper, plunging into the blanket of stars, between the threads of the universe until I reach You.

Abba, I'm such a little bird. But sometimes, when You're near, I stand on my tiptoes, ready to leave the ground. I close my eyes and can feel You drawing me up. My heart fills up, a smile turns up. Up, up, and up. There is no end to this atmosphere. Take me higher.