Woodpecker

When you are home during the week, not working - as I am currently, you become more aware of the daily activities of creatures around the house. This does not only include the dogs, but the birds and even insects as well.


Mentioning this I came to notice the curious activities of a woodpecker around our house. I was busy in the kitchen one morning, when I heard a repetitive pecking noise.


I went to the washing room widow from where I could witness the source of the sound: a woodpecker was chipping away at the garage window. First he looked at his own reflection in the window, and not thinking that he is looking at his own worst enemy he would attack that image of himself with passion and energy. Unfortunately, all his efforts were in vain and whatever he does, his enemy does the same back. He came back time after time throughout the week, but his worst enemy stayed undefeated. It never crossed his mind that he was looking at his own reflection in that garage window.


At first I laughed at this curious incident, but after a while I really pitied him. All this time and energy wasted on a mere image. He would never realise that all his efforts are wasted on a fiction.


As I was analysing his behaviour it dawned on me that we also exhibit some woodpecker behaviour. So often we are our own worst enemies. Daily we fight against the sometimes distorted images we have of ourselves – images of low self-image, images corrupted by what we think others think of us, misconceptions created by things which happened in our past. Just like the woodpecker we aimlessly attack ourselves, hoping to change our behaviour, just to find the distorted image unchanged the next day.


So many opportunities are lost and wasted while we are fighting the battles we cannot win.


Can we change? Will we ever see a true picture of ourselves? I believe the only way we will be freed from a false image we have of ourselves is to see ourselves through the eyes of Jesus. He looks at us and values us so much that he was willing to give His life so that we may live eternally without any distorted image of ourselves, clean and without disfigurement.


May we start to see ourselves, this Easter, through the eyes of Jesus. Only then can we embrace who we are and live the life God intended for us.