I feel like I've become a better person thanks to what birds have taught me through years. They have taught me positive practices like patience, mindfulness, understanding, selflessness, self-care, stress management (I still stress the hecc out, but not as bad as I used to), and more. I was even able to overcome a bulk of my social anxiety that's plagued me since I was smol.

Socializing can still be mentally exhausting on occasion, but it doesn't instigate my anxiety like it used to (it was to the point of panic attacks). Even now, whenever I want to give up or I'm afraid to take the next step on my mission, my mantra of, "Do it for the birds" forces me out of my comfort zone and allows me to conquer my fears and allows me to level up over time.

Can't forget to give credit to Saint Cody who did a great job as a pseudo-emotional-support-animal. 

Over 10 chaotic-yet-wonderful years later, I have no regrets.

Here a few quotes that may inspire to to do better by birds, yourself, and the world around us:

Original Birdhist Proverbs

“Saving one bird will not change the world, but it would change the world for that one bird.”

“A pet that costs 1 million dollars deserves as much love and care as one that costs nothing.”

“Do more. Squawk less.”

“The bird that has rested flies farther.”

"Once a baby bird graduates from nestling to fledglings, their parents force them out of their comfy nests where they learn to survive and fly from the ground up. Transitions are hard, but once you learn to overcome them, there's nothing but sky."

“All that peeps is not sweet.”

"Quiet the cockatoo mind with regular mediation."

“Holding onto anger is like trying to hold Hilda with the intent of passing her to someone else; you are the one who gets bit.”

“Three things cannot be long hidden: a bite, a squawk, and the truth.”

“But they, that dares not get bit, should never crave the BIRB.”

“You can be the cutest bird in the world and there’s still going to be somebody who hates birds. ”

“Time spent with birds is never wasted.”

“Small stuff isn’t worth ruffling your feathers.”

"Why throw hands when you can gib scritch?"

"The bird chooses you just as much as you choose the bird."

“Just as a bird molts their feathers, we must shed our past over and over again.”

“You’ll miss the beauty of birds in flight if you only focus on their poop on your car.” 

“Try talking before squawking.”

“You can't judge a Penguin by their ability to fly or a Parrot by their ability to swim.”

Cast your worries away like SEEB out of a bird’s bowl.

“Birds are for life, not just holidays.”

"A bird must preen their own feathers before they preen anothers’."

“Just because somebirdy is different doesn’t make them less awesome, just a different kind of awesome."

“Love birds for who they are, not what they can do for you.”

“Compassion for all birds can lead to compassion for all.”

 Birdhism's Golden Rule: “Do the least harm.”

“Feed two birds with one scone.”

“The best things in life aren’t things, they're birds.”

"With great birbs come great responsibility."

"Treat others with the same kindness you'd give Cody."

“Know birds. Know life. No birds. No life.”

"It is better to be alone than with someone who clips your wings."

Birdhist Affirmations

“Today I will be happier than a lovebird with millet.” 

“I will love and care for myself as much as I love and care for my Bird.”

“I am a peliCAN, not a peliCAN’T.”

"Guest" Birdhists

“Keep a green tree in your heart and perhaps a singing bird will come.”
- Chinese Proverb 

“The bird, a nest; the spider, a web; man, friendship."
- William Blake

“Give the ones you love wings to fly, roots to come back, and reasons to stay.”
- Dalai Lama

“Until one has loved an animal, a part of one’s soul remains unawakened.”
- Anatole France

"It's not about what your bird can do for you, but what you can do for your bird."
- Mira Tweti, Of Parrots and People

“When the Sun of compassion arises darkness evaporates and the singing birds come from nowhere.”
- Amit Ray

“The bird dares to break the shell, then the shell breaks open, and the bird can fly openly. This is the simplest principle of success. You dream, you dare, and you fly.”
- Israelmore Ayivor

“Just because you feed a parrot doesn’t mean they’re going to like you.”
- Mattie Suye Athan, Bird Behaviorist

“You have to believe in happiness, or happiness never comes… ah, that’s the reason a bird can sing. On the darkest day, they believe in Spring.”
- Douglas Malloch

“Water birds, going and coming,
their traces disappear, but they 
never forget their path.”
- Japanese Zen Master, Eihei Dogen

Consider the trees which allow the birds to perch and fly away without either inviting them to stay or desiring them never to depart. If your heart can be like this, you’ll be near to the Way.”
- Zen Saying

"If you want to fly, let go of everything that weighs you down."
- Toni Morrison

"Life is a balance of holding on to the branch and letting it go."
- Rumi

“You will never know how far you can fly if you never leave the tree.”
- Napoleon

“Live in such a way that you would not be ashamed to sell your parrot to the town gossip.”
- Will Rogers

“It's not the fault of the parrot, but of the one who teaches him to talk.”
- Guatemalan Proverb

“Use what talents you possess; the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best.”
- Henry Van Dyke

“I keep looking for one more teacher, only to find that fish learn from the water and birds learn from the sky.”
- Mark Nepo

"Some birds are not meant to be caged, that's all. Their feathers are too bright, their songs too sweet and wild. So you let them go, or when you open the cage to feed them they somehow fly out past you. And the part of you that knows it was wrong to imprison them in the first place rejoices, but still, the place where you live is that much more drab and empty for their departure." 
- Stephen King (Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption)

“You cannot prevent the birds of sorrow from flying over your head, but you can prevent them from building nests in your hair.”
- Chinese Proverb

“I pray to the birds because they remind me of what I love rather than what I fear. And at the end of my prayers, they teach me how to listen.”
- Terry Tempest Williams

“A bird sitting on a tree is never afraid of the branch breaking, because their trust is not on the branch, but on their own wings.”
- Unknown

"The bird who dares to fall is the bird who learns to fly." 
- Unknown