Eagle Eye

I sat in my neighbors kitchen close to the window where an eagle perched on the lip of a bird bath not ten feet away. The magnificent creature was very aware of our presence, so we spoke quietly and moved slowly not wanting it to leave. A good thirty minutes past, with our camera’s flashing and a crow making a perfect pest of itself by diving at the eagle’s head, cawing continuously.

The most extraordinary thing about the bald eagle is it’s vision. They can see forever. I watched the head that can turn nearly 180 degrees and the eyes that scan for miles and wondered how it would be to have such vision. Would we see danger coming long before it arrived? Would we see warnings written on the walls, whereas we miss it all now?

Vision is tricky. It’s subject to our open or closed hearts. There are times we see sadness, despair, and rejection, in the eyes of each other, only because our hearts are soft and receiving. The other times are navigated by the coldness of our hard hearts as we refuse to see past the outer layer of those in our midst, past our anger, hurt, or humiliation. Our vision is clouded or crystal clear, depending on the state of our hearts.

Sitting in my friends kitchen watching the magnificence’s of the eagle brought me to wondering about my own vision. Do I see what I should? Is there life in front of me that I refuse to acknowledge out of fear, or stubbornness, or laziness? What happens before my very eyes as one day follows the next that I do not see, for one reason or the other?

Makes me want to open my eyes with the help of other senses; if I listen more attentively to the tone of a persons voice, to the choice of words spoken, I may be able to see from their perspective. Illness often causes an unusual odor; if I pay attention I may be able to detect a smell to explain the way a person stands back, rejects a touch, or avoids eye contact. Touch can help us see that an infant is cold or too warm, or that a person is tense and uncomfortable.  We can taste water and see that it may look clear yet is contaminated. We can see through the use of our senses, that everything isn’t always as it appears.

I wonder if the eagle uses other senses to fine tune his vision or if his telescopic vision overpowers all.  Regardless, I’ve decided to add clear vision to my life’s journey. I will try and “see” through the use of all my senses, through the ordinariness of day to day life, through the fog settled in my brain, and through the emotional ups and downs of my heart.

Later,

Mary Ann