Monday morning I found my husband standing at our back door, silently gazing up at my favorite little tree.

"There's a mama bird" he whispered as he heard me approaching.

And he was right.

I peered out the door with him and there she was - all snuggled into the nest she built in our pretty tree, presumably waiting for her babies to hatch.

With 3 dogs and a fenced-in backyard, that back door gets a lot of use each day and every single time I open the door to let out a dog or two, the mama bird flies out of her nest and perches a few branches up. She watches our every move, making sure she and her babies are not in danger.

And every time I see her, I can't help but to be awed by the beauty of nature and the power of natural instincts.

That mama bird surely hasn't read any parenting books on how to protect her babies from wiggly dogs. She certainly hasn't watched any Youtube videos on how to build safe and secure nests. She definitely hasn't attended a class at a local hospital on how to properly hatch her eggs.

Yet, she just knows how to do it all.

And the truth is, in so many situations in life - we just know too.

But so often we allow our instincts to be drowned out by societal pressures and judgments, or overpowered by our own anxious thoughts.

So this week each time I see that mama bird, I force myself to be still for just a moment.
I take a few deep breaths.
In and out.
I bring myself back to the present.
And I force myself to listen to my own instincts and to trust my own judgment.

It's a simple addition to my days this week but so far it's been powerful.

Maybe today is a good day for you to try it too.