Every morning I wake up listening to the chirping of birds making their way to a destination known only to them. Then in the evening as the sun turns the sky into a beautiful canvas of myriad colors, I enjoy watching the birds head back home. They leave their homes, but they know that they have to return to where they belong, their home.

As we begin the season of Lent, I believe the ‘birds of the air’ have a lesson to teach us. There is a time to stray away, but there is a time to return. In their search for food the birds wander far from home, just like we humans, who in our pursuit of happiness and care for the future, stray into forbidden territories.

As it happens, we might even break our bonds in the process, be it marital union, or our relationship with the family or true friends. By the time we realize what has happened we would have travelled to what seems to be a point of no return.

All is not lost yet. If we can listen to that faint voice inside of us, there is still a way out, or a way back. A little bit of humility coupled with an element of courage can take us back to where we belong. We have 40 days to do that, to head back home and to reestablish the broken relationships. We can be sure of God accepting and forgiving us, because as we read in the Scripture, “God is love”, and where there is love there is forgiveness.

With our relationship with God reestablished, we will then have the courage to work on other relationships. True love will always be willing to forgive. So it is time to head back home, to where we belong, where true peace and happiness dwells. Just follow the ‘GPS’ of our conscience.