Eagle Medicine

Back through the mists of time, said Grandfather Eagle, to the little eaglet’s  of a second generation, all things in nature were in step with one another. But after a time, one of the life forms drove hard to get  ahead of all the others  and became what is known as human beings.   Unfortunately, the more distance they put between themselves and other organisms, their own intelligence was warped into a world where they thought they had control over everything they touched. So busy were they “being” they forgot to look anywhere except straight ahead.  Their self-absorption formed an arrogance that became a battleground where many fights became common as various beings forked into different cultures, each  believing they had the better answers to anything and everything than any of the others.

Though the stars traced circles in the night skies far above their heads, right before their eyes, where they could always be seen, they forgot the message twinkling brightly in the heavens.   Ignoring the oracles circling from afar, humans continued their ways following straight lines in their every task. But the way of linear directions cause drastic edges which can create dangerous places to fatally fall over, unlike circular ways, with only curves to create safer passage.

While humans followed nature and made silver eagles they called jets, they forgot to imitate the same flight path as prescribed by nature. These metal birds flew in straight lines to gain height, while brother and sister eagles circled around to ride thermals ever upwardly.

All things in nature have repeatable patterns and circuitous routes. Man separates himself from nature by getting out of sync with the circular motion, and is why he falls into such depths that turn into self-defeating paths. But  curvature in motion always leads back upon itself, with no routes to fall off of and into terrible results.  Eagles flight is only repetitious in motion as it never leads to a dead-end. It only offers elevation and a different revelation as it spirals progressively higher.

So  to end his story to the eaglet’s, Grandfather Eagle spread his wings and showed them the roundness of his feathers that held ample air enough to enable flight.  Then he flapped each wing and jumped into the sky to fly around like the stars that light the darkness when the earth spins the spinning sun out of view.  This became his message, that all it takes to learn how to fly is to follow the examples written by the language of nature.  Truths discovered are simple to grasp, once revealed. But they matter little until they are discovered. Better not to have wings, than to have them and not use them. That is the point of discovery. Fly.

To fly like eagles:

(figuratively  floating)

Gary Lane
Wapiti River Guides
http://www.doryfun.com