I love idioms! You know, those phrases that you say that everyone knows and it’s so easy to use without even thinking about it. I’m learning that a lot of these idioms that are used often in the United states come from farming and farm animals - by my own experience! Here are a few for example:
•Cock-eyed - a rooster (a cockerel ) will literally turn his head So he can glare at you with one eye (which is where cock your head comes from, too) •Chicken scratch- chickens make lines in the dust and dirt with their nails just because that’s what chickens do. If that’s what your handwriting looks like, no one can read it for sure!
•acting chicken or being a chicken- yup! They are afraid of everything! They startle for no apparent reason and when one freaks out, they all do!
•rule the roost - chickens rest of a bar called a roost and one is always in charge
•pecking order- to find the one that is in charge, they will literally peck each other
•pig pile- they do. Just for fun. And my chickens do, too
•eat like a pig - when our Magalistas are finished eating it is all over the ground and all over their faces and everywhere- but they also clean up every little scrap of it and are always (I mean always) hungry for more
•squeal - while pigs can’t tell your secret or turn you in to get in trouble, they definitely don’t keep quiet! Ever!
•getting up with the chickens or going to bed with the chickens - they run on the sun. The moment there is any light at all, they are up. When it starts to loose light, not even sun set yet, they go to bed
•hog wild - pigs are docile and lazy.... right up until they aren’t! And then they are loud and crazy! Not much in between
•busy as a bee- we have the coolest fluffy bumblebees and carpenter bees here. And they are busy!
•And finally like a duck to water- my babies went for their first swim today.... and they instantly loved it!
These little ducks are amazing!
When ducks are young, they know who to follow…it’s mom. No question about it. Just watching little ducklings toddling along behind a mother duck brings smiles to our faces. But my little ones don’t have a mamma duck. They have each other and they have me (obviously not a duck). And somehow, they know how to swim, where to sleep, how to clean their feathers, to come when I call them, what to eat and what not to eat, and many other duckie things. Surprisingly, this duckling behavior gives us an important clue about how to live more joyfully and successfully.
Ducks are wired to quickly attach to their mother when they hatch. It’s a process called imprinting. They form an immediate attachment and align with their mama.
Because of imprinting, ducklings learn to act and live like a duck from their mother, including how to follow in a line for safety.
If mom isn’t present when they hatch, the ducklings imprint on who they encounter first. Ever seen a duck who has attached to a person? It has happened! I’m not convinced they are imprinted on me but they know I come with food and I keep them safe.
Forming an attachment determines their whole destiny.
Connecting with God
Like the ducklings to their mother, you were intended to connect with God from the day you were born.
This is so significant! God created you in His own image. Like Adam and all the generations that followed him, God’s image has been passed down to you.
“In the day that God created man, He made him in the likeness of God. He created them male and female. … And Adam lived 130 years, and begot a son in his own likeness, after his image” (Gen. 5: 1-3)
God’s spiritual DNA resides within you! That DNA is activated through the Holy Spirit when you choose Jesus. You begin to discover God’s character and His great love for you as your relationship deepens and grows.
But, If you imprint on on the wrong thing, you are no longer learning how to be a duck. Ok.... that was a dumb statement but you know what I mean. if work, social activities, family, or other priorities become more important than your relationship with God, your attachment to Him begins to dwindle And you are less like His image.
These priorities may begin to define you rather than God. You begin to attach to the world, not God. It’s like a duckling imprinting on a goose or a person – it’s simply not meant to be! Protect your attachments. Connecting with God is a number one priority.
Without that connection, there is a spiritual void that we attempt to fill in other ways, and a lot of those ways are harmful. You may find happiness, but that is often a temporary emotion based on favorable circumstances and not sustainable over time.
Let’s go for the true joy and trust that it will be full. Like those cute ducklings to their mom, connecting with God will help you fulfill your destiny and learn to be who you were meant to be.
Kara NicholsonCell:(970)568-2238 Sent from my iPhone