Observation. This is another important reason to include sabbath time in one's schedule on a regular basis. With our hectic, high-speed, high-stress, constantly on the go, one more thing to do, scheduled lives today, we move so quickly and so distractedly through life that we seldom take the time to simply "observe" life. We might spend more time than we should (I know I do) "watching" TV shows, sporting events, even news. But how much time do we devote to simply "observing" the world around us: watching our children or grandchildren play, especially when they are not aware of our presence; watching the birds in the trees and bushes outside the window, or the lizards on the pool deck; watching the clouds form and float by; watching a rain shower or thunderstorm pour out its fury; watching the sunrise or sunset long enough to enjoy all the subtle color shifts during the event.
Beyond the obvious exercise benefits and the hour plus for meditation, the opportunity to observe the world around me is one reason I treasure my time to walk each day. It is during my walking times that I most often see the wildlife which inhabits the world with us. They are always there, but when we are zipping from place to place in our steel-encased automobiles we zoom by them so quickly we easily miss their presence. Last week while in Georgetown, Texas I walked three mornings at sunrise. The first day I spied 5 white-tail deer. The next morning, walking in a light rain shower I noticed 3 more deer. The last morning, a beautiful dawn, I doubled my count and saw 8 deer. That made a total of 16 sightings of deer in 3 days. (I realize some of them may have been the same animals, since they were all sighted along the same 2 mile stretch of road. Even so, the 8 deer spotted the last day were all distinct, separate animals.) I also saw what I believe was a spotted owl on the first morning fly across the roadway, being chased by some smaller bird.
Speaking of "observation" - as I write this blog post I just glanced outside the window above my desk and the sun has evidently shifted to strike with illumination, a large, intricate, well-crafted spider web hanging directly a foot beyond the window. I just looked up at the right time to notice it. Had I not done so, as I can tell now, a few minutes later, I would have missed it, for the sun angle has shifted again and the web has become almost invisible from this spot. So much of observation is obviously about timing. And being in a mode of alertness and readiness to receive.
While I enjoyed seeing the deer in Texas, I live in a veritable paradise of wildlife activity and enjoy spotting fellow creatures regularly on my walks here in South Florida. Regularly I enjoy the company of peacocks with their brilliant turquoise and aquamarine colored feathers, aw well as flocks of ibis along with lone herons, great and small, white and blue. Mullet regularly jump in the canals and this past week I finally spied one of the small crocodiles which lives in the small lake behind the office building where the VITAS south office is located. (I do think the large crocodile escaped that lake. The fence at the end of the ramp, evidently erected to keep the crocodiles impounded, appeared to have been breached, having been bent under a great weight. And I have heard reports of a 10 foot crocodile having been spotted in in the mouth of the C-100 canal at Deering Point feasting on the small snapper.) There is also a pair of horned owls which live in the trees of the small park on the C-100 canal through which I walk which I have occasionally spotted early in the morning right after sunrise.
This morning I arrived at the bay at Deering Point right at sunrise. There were growing cumulus clouds hovering on the eastern horizon which added to the splendor of the sunrise. But the most amazing part of the 15 minutes I spent standing by the bay was experiencing the waves of ibis setting out from their roosting mangroves about a half mile north of my spot. They left in groups of 15 to 30 at a time and flew in formations south. As they passed overhead and all around in wave after wave it was like some massive air force taking off and headed on some bombing run to attack some distant target. They make no squawking noise as they fly, but when a large flock passes close by the noise of the wings, the strong "whoooosh" is awesome! It was a most amazing, wonderful way to begin the day.
The pictures posted include the spider web I just observed, some samples of South Florida wildlife I often enjoy, and a sample of the low-flying, early morning ibis flocks passing close by which I photographed on another morning, not today.
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