A New Bird

By Ashley Leiss

A poem for children and their families about how bad days make us better people. Your struggle is not for nothing!

I want to tell you the story of how I became a new bird!

Have you ever been sick

lonely, or sad?

That’s what happened to me and I was so mad.

One ordinary day

I woke up feeling strange

Somehow I knew

my life would never be the same.

I didn’t want to see other birds, they could never

understand!

When you wake up one day

and things go unplanned.

I watched them fly by

in the beautiful breeze.

From tree to tree

feeling so free.

There I was alone in my nest

A sad, heavy feeling resting on my chest

And each day the other birds would try to help

me

Bringing me food and stories of the wonders that

they’d see.

As the summer turned to fall and my wings felt

so weak

I was so tired and scared no birds would

recognize me!

But one day I woke after a very long nap

My friend the Sparrow stopped by and helped

me change tracks.

“Each day is a gift no matter how hard. When

we are sick and tired it can be a struggle to see

that far.

I know you look different and feel different too,

and you’re trying each day to feel like the old

you.

But don’t look behind or too far ahead, just

look up and trust God instead.”

I hugged the Sparrow so tight with all of my

might and I looked at the moon so differently that

night.

You see, I became a new bird,

His love set me free

I began feeling stronger

from inside my tree.

I tell you this story if you’re becoming a new bird

too.

Or if someone you know seems a little bit

different to you.

The next day I flew high out of my nest

And saw all my friends and laughed hard deep in

my chest.

On my way home I saw a sad bird who needed

my care.

He needed some hope that was now mine to

share.

I told them the story of how much I’ve changed.

And that how without hard days, they’d just all

be the same.