Out the window of the Amtrak train, I just saw an eagle soar above the Hudson.
But I do not see the soaring eagle as a symbol of our country. We are too divided, rancorous, and the eagle is too beautiful, wild.
The bird soars. It is so elegant and at-peace. Yes, I hate when people anthropomorphize animals (especially dogs!) but I can’t help this metaphor. It just came to me and I have to go with it.
This current US political and economic scene is way too vitriolic and fluctuating to be found in nature. While the stock markets jump, the politicians pounce, the eagle soars.
In soaring there are lessons or rules for living. Worried about your portfolio? Retirement? Millionaires getting a free pass? Get out! Get into nature!
- Watch a squirrel or a fluffy cloud.
- Sit on a park bench.
- Drink some cold water.
- Smile at a stranger.
- Pet a neighbor’s dog (but don’t anthropomorphize it.)
- Breathe fresh air.
Find yourself in nature and you will get a breather, a respite, a grounding. It’s why prophets trekked to the desert, corporate execs went on Outward Bound, (although money for corporate bonding has probably dried up.)
Looking for epiphanies? Looking for meaning? Try looking for real life eagles.
Or go somewhere on a train. I just finished writing this and looked out the Amtrak window again.
I saw a hawk up high and a heron down low.
God, nature is amazing! New York State still has a lot of wildlife, and I’m not talkin’ bout City Hall or Wall Street.
100 Days of Poems and Pics 