why are we mammals & not birds?

for a year or so now i have been pondering the question, "why did God create us as mammals and not birds?" i ask this because i would really prefer to be a bird, & i really do want to fly. i have recently discovered that i am in good company with others (josh, kari, madeleine l'engle) who have vivid memories of flying as a child, even if it was just down the stairs, off of a picnic table, or a few feet above the sidewalk. we all believe that we did, in fact, fly, & have since lost the ability, faith, or imagination to do so as adults.

: this is the bird i would choose to be--the Great Blue Heron :

so as i've pondered this question my biggest & brightest conclusion is this: i don't want to sit on eggs for 9 months. obviously, at some point in time, humans were in greater danger from predators than we generally are now, & eggs are much more difficult to protect than a hidden baby (i think). so this seems to be God's wisdom--a great way to protect humankind. let them carry their yet-to-be-born babies around in little moveable aquariums for 9 months. yes. much safer.

and now i have a little birdie inside of me. & i am glad to not be sitting on a nest of eggs. she or he is 14 weeks along. today i was praying for the baby as i walked around our neighboring cemetery, my favorite place to walk around here. people have asked me if i have an in-utero name for the baby like "sprout" or "peanut". & i didn't really until this week, when it started to feel impersonal to pray for the baby, always saying, "the baby" or calling it "it", "him", "her", "he", or "she". so to God i call this little creature "little bird" or "birdie" when i pray. & there are so many reasons why this fits. so if you feel led to pray for our little baby, you may feel free to use the same names until the little bird is hatched, & we bestow a new out-of-the-womb name. feels a bit more personal, doesn't it?