Thursday, April 10, 2008

The Jonathans of this world




Jonathan Livingston Seagull was one of my early heroes. His creator, Richard Bach has remained one of my enduring touchstones of many things which must be done, but not easily.



Have you ever seen a seagull take to the air? He spreads his wings wide, does a quick hop, skip and jumps into the air. The seagull is unlike many other birds. Unlike the beautiful birds of prey, he does not circle far overhead in solitary wait. Again, unlike sparrows or pigeons, he does not find it within himself to consort with humans.



The loneliness of the seagull is a very special one. He may choose to skim the waves at dawn with a few friends, but come evening, he usually waits quietly for the waves to come in. And when they do, he flies off.. answering a call that we cannot hear. Perhaps, like Jonathan, he appears far away, at a place where mere wings cannot take you.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Stalking birds again? :)

-Kitty Khat

Rachna said...

when did you go to florida?

Unknown said...

last march, at the previous experimental NMR conference

and yes, still stalking birds