Quail

Long time readers of my blog will know that quail is my favorite bird.  I've used Quail for A/Z in the past but not on this blog.  Some of these pictures (and stories) will be familiar to those long time readers.  

When we lived in Prescott, Arizona, which is in the high country at 5500 feet elevation, we lived in a homeowner's association rental house.  There was a lot of open "wildlife" area around us and we did get the occasional wildlife like javelinas and snakes and quail.  Now quail can also live in a city like Phoenix, but because there were no brick walls and plenty of open space, it was a great place for them, especially with all the shrubs and bushes there.

I would see quail in my walks around the neighborhood but I had not seen any baby quail.  One day I was praying and at the end of the prayer, I said to God "I really wish I would see some baby quail but I know it is probably late in the season (it was July) so that's okay if I don't."  Then I started to clean the kitchen.  Our kitchen had a big window that looked out into an open area of rocks and bushes and the like.

I kid you not.  Something caught my eye as I was cleaning and I looked out the window.  On the rocks were baby quail.  Lots of baby quail.  

I went to grab my camera to take pictures and then they started walking towards the patio, right by the window where I was taking the pictures.  They stayed there for a few minutes then took off with their parents.  I was shaking because I was amazed at seeing them and knew it was definitely a gift from God.  

Crossing the street right in front of our house.  There were 17 babies in this family.  Mom and Dad Quail took really good care of them. 

This is not all of them, but these are the same quail family that came to visit when they were babies.  We fed the birds a lot when we lived there in Prescott and the quail would come often to feed.  You'll notice the lighter color one in the bunch.  That one always fascinated me when they came to visit. 

I shared a lot of pictures on  blog at that time of the quail.  I'm sure readers were getting tired of seeing them all.  I never got tired of watching the quail and always enjoyed when they came to visit.  They taught me a lesson about patience and waiting.  

If they sensed danger, they would all scuttle under a bush or shrub and just wait until the danger had passed.  They basically didn't move the entire time.  One time I watched for 45 minutes while they just waited until it was safe to move.  

It taught me I have to be patient and wait for God for his timing for prayers to be answered that I have prayed.  And sometimes I might just have to be still while I'm waiting for those prayers to be answered and not take matters into my own hands.

We stayed a total of 15 months in Prescott and I saw many a quail while there.  We moved to Phoenix and though I have seen quail here, it wasn't the same as having our own quail family come to visit.  However, we moved closer to family and to our grandson who was born 6 weeks before we moved here.  His birth was a great gift from God too.