Some of us are loners, people who have been accustomed to doing life with or with out people. Loners by choice. We have gone through experiences that have made it hard for us to trust others. We meet new people and sometimes feel that tug from God on the inside to reach out, or the feeling that maybe, just maybe, you might be able to have a wonderful friendship with someone, but when it comes time to get together, or make a phone call and reach out…..you stop. You go into protection mode. You become self enthralled….you start making excuses, or reasons that sound pretty darn valid, even to you. Why do we do that?? How is that benefiting our lives? Who are we protecting and from what?
As I was walking today…(yes, I have started walking…and it feels great!) I kept seeing all these Pelicans flying by. I am not a "bird" person, in fact I can't stand birds, but pelicans are amazing to me. i love to watch them soar and glide through the sky. They seem to grip the air around the cliffs and the water, just skimming the waves. They hug the curves of the cliffs as if by instinct. They seem so big and majestic yet fly through the air with ease. What amazes me most about them is the way they fly in a formation. There is a leader of the V shape that they form and they glide and fly so amazingly in line. Why do they do this? Well, thats what my mind kept wondering this morning, so I investigated why…the reason is because when they fly in formation the wind is already broken by the bird in front of them. This is what I read :
Our results provide empirical evidence that, compared with solo flight, formation flight allows birds to reduce their energy expenditure while flying at a similar speed.
"In birds flying in formation each wing moves in an upwash field that is generated by the wings of the other birds in the formation."
Even when pelicans struggled to fly in a pattern, the benefits still outweighed the disadvantages.
Oh my gosh! Can you believe that….God was giving me a visual illustration of why we need to allow people into our lives. We need to trust again that those who lead us aren't necessarily going to go off course, but that they will break the wind, they will soar to new heights, and if we are in formation, we will go right along. Pelicans can go a much farther distance in a group, than by themselves, because they expend much less energy.
As I watched this flock fly past me today, I noticed a few stragglers, coming up on the rear. There is an area along the coast that is a cove and it gets really windy there. It looks like the birds use it to play in, they soar and dive in the wind. Well one of the stragglers didn't keep up with the group of birds and she started playing in the wind, all by herself. I watched and I laughed out loud. This bird looked like it was having so much fun! But I realized, that this is how I am at times. I will separate from the flock and the power of the group to soar on my own and play the way I want to. I will get caught up in the moment and lose focus on what my goals are and how to accomplish them, within the power of the flock. On our own, we may have fun, we may soar and dive and use the winds of life that turn us and twist us…but if we would just stay with the flock, we wouldn't have to work so hard, we could use the aerodynamics of the group to soar.
We all need each other in this life, and I don't mean that you need EVERYONE to be your "best buddy". But when God impresses on your heart to reach out and get involved in something or make some new friends that have similar interests as you, or you feel a completely divine connection, don't let it pass you by. It can be hard to fall into the rhythm of the wind with that flock again.
Love you all, thanks for letting me share, yet again another piece of my journey :)
Kristin
