365 Days of Earrings

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Jabebo bluebirds

How I love this pair of earrings! Let me count the ways:

The two earrings share a shape; at first glance, they look identical. On closer inspection, the viewer says, "Oh! One is a bluebird, and the other is a tree trunk with a bluebird peeking out!"

I love bluebirds! For their beauty, for being harbingers of spring, for teaching humans that they can make a difference.

They are devoted parents who work as a team to care for their young.

They eat insects. (If they ate stinkbugs, I'd invite them in!)

They nest in cavities, but are willing to move into the boxes we humans build for them.

This pair of earrings reminds me of one of my favorite projects from my science teaching years: building bluebird boxes and monitoring the nest boxes on my school's nature trail. Teaching students how to sneak up on a box, tap on the side to encourage the parent to fly out, gently opening the flap and peeking in to see first the nest, then the eggs, then the nestlings, then the abandoned nest to clean out so that the pair can start again.

If you build a bluebird box, they will come! The comeback of the bluebird from the road to extinction demonstrates that humans can find simple solutions to complex problems if they just work hard enough.

I love these earrings because they were made by a family business, Jabebo, by an artist who shares his love and knowledge of science through his art. Check them out at http://www.jabebo.com/

Oh, yes. And I love them because I love blue.

1 comment:

Käthe said...

These are some of my favorites! I like them because they are blue, too. Neat website. I liked looking through their other options.