Positive Mitzvah 148: Sending Away the Mother Bird
Deuteronomy 22:7 "You shall surely let the mother go (before taking her young)"

Davy and Eli were constructing a tree house in their back yard. They nailed boards and hammered panels, working hard at their project.

"Hey, Eli!" Davy suddenly said in an excited tone. "Look what I found! A real bird's nest up here on the branch."

"I can see it," Eli said, peering through the branches of the tree.

"Do you think there's anything in it?"

Davy shimmered up the tree as quietly as possible, careful not to scare away a bird that might be in the nest.

"Well? What is it?" Eli called.

Davy motioned for him to keep quiet. He made his way down quickly, jumping to the ground from a low branch.

"It's a real nest! There's a mother pigeon sitting very still in the nest. She didn't even fly away when I came near. That means she's laying her eggs," explained Davy.

"Wow!" exclaimed Eli. "Let's take the eggs to show Mr. Gold, the science teacher. Boy, will he be proud of me!"

"Just a minute, Eli," said Davy. "In our Chumash class, we learned that if we want to take the eggs, we must first send the mother away."

Davy was explaining to Eli this special Mitzvah.

If a person comes across a nest that contains the mother bird and her baby birds or eggs, he must not take the mother along.

He is commanded to send the mother away and only then may he take the birds or eggs.

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Remember you are not the body. Neither are you the animal that pounds within the body, demanding its way in every thing. You are a G-dly soul. Do not confuse the pain and struggle of the body with the joy and purity of the G-dly soul.

From: Bringing Heaven Down to Earth by Tzvi Freeman - tzvif@aol.com