"Use what talents you possess. The woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those who sang the best."
— Henry Van Dyke
In 1858 the Pre-Raphaelite painter Sir John Everett Millais stood before an ancient oak at Hayes Common in Kent and painted something extraordinary — a fairy tale forest alive with light, fern and mystery. One hundred and sixty years later his magnificent tree hosts two small birds who have no intention of staying silent.
A cardinal. A wren. Neither the best singer in the woods. Both singing anyway.
Henry Van Dyke (1852-1933) was an American poet, author and Princeton professor of English literature — a man who found in nature both beauty and moral truth. His beloved words remind us that the world needs every voice — not just the most polished, the most practiced, the most perfect. Every voice is unique. Every voice adds something irreplaceable to the beauty and wonder of the world. Your song matters. Sing it.
Painting: Hayes Common (1858) by Sir John Everett Millais. Public domain image via Rawpixel.com
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