Friday, February 28, 2014

Birds

Man I'm telling you it seems like every time we get blasted with a snow storm - the next day is blue sky gorgeous.

Do not expect me to tell you the snow looks pretty - I could never bring myself to utter those words - but, perhaps by way of comparison, when the storm is over and you have wrenched your back shoveling the snow and endured a 3 hour commute home from work after having your car towed out of a ditch and settled into your recliner wearing long johns and a winter coat because the power is out and your house is an ice castle - the next day, if clear and sunny, looks gorgeous.

If you look up.

Not down.

The birds though, the birds are the thing. Could be that birds are the most optimistic creatures on God's green earth.

They are out there chirping away. Unfazed. Singing their song and getting along.

It hit me yesterday when my ass was parked in this exact spot on a cruel, cold February day - and the birds were singing.

Loudly. Confidently. Irrepressibly.

That got me thinking of all the times this winter that I have staggered out of the homestead on the day after another vicious storm and been greeted with beauty and music.

Birds are for the soul.

They keep you company in the summer when you are at peace. They flit and fly, exposing their beauty to the world, giving you something to thrill to. They perch on tree branches and allow you to appreciate their uniqueness and beauty; they hover next to a hummingbird feeder and allow you to marvel at their delicateness.

They sit on the railing of your porch and laugh at your deadlines and commitments.

They remind you in the dead of winter, when all you can think about is murder, suicide, drug addiction, hangovers, disappointment, lies, misrepresentations and broken promises, that this too shall pass.

Not only will it pass but you might as well sing as you suffer.

There is the magic of flight. We are all jealous. We try to get there through booze, drugs, meditation, spirituality, and avoidance of reality but we fall short always, stuck to the ground hopelessly like bugs pinned down in science experiments.

It ain't all about flying. It is more about the general nature of birds.

They just seem happy. And industrious. And enthusiastic.

Energetic.

They are so cool they are willing to call attention to themselves through song as if to say "Come on, it is not all that bad, lift up your eyes and take a look around. You can do better. You can get better. You can grab yourself a chunk of happiness and nibble on it for sustenance. Nothing is accomplished through looking down."

They share their life philosophy with us every day of every year no matter what the circumstance, no matter what their circumstance.

That is spirituality.

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