Saturday, August 4, 2012

Blackbird, Blackbird

Today, I was sauntering on my rooftop. That might sound odd to you, but it is something I have a habit of doing. Walking on the rooftop, I observe many happenings I wouldn't usually have. Today, I noticed the an oddity about a specific bird.

I begun noticing that most birds fly the same way, at the same time. There's a saying to go with that too, 'birds of a feather flock together'. It may sound like a cliché, but it's true. During flight, most birds flap their wings in a rhythmic manner. It's a graceful upward and downward movement. It is not a movement that would photograph well; it is a movement beautiful only through the human eye. Most birds that inhabit urban areas look the same, eat the same things, and fly in the graceful, distincitve manner.

Through my previous posts, you might have begun to notice something. I love and admire anyone or anything that is not conventional. I love the odd ones who are willing to stand out. It is a bad habit. In humans, they're fairly common. Some people have a spark within them, that I can not miss. Humans have cliques and groups within them. Usually the people within these groups have much in common. I'm not saying it is a bad thing, but sometimes it leads to the destruction of a person being an individual. When you are a group, you tend to go along with whatever everyone else is doing. This does not have to be a bad thing. However, it doesn't take courage to go with the flow. Thus, individuals who don't fit in a specific group but fit in many or none are usually alone. It takes courage to be alone. It takes courage to stand out.

For me, courage is expected of humans now and then. Today, I experienced something so simple it shouldn't have meant anything, but it did. It meant more to me than anything that has happened in the last week. I saw a bird that was alone. It did not have a flock, it was flying alone. It wasn't flying in  the up-down manner that all birds fly. No, it was different. It was flapping its wings sporadically, but once in a while it would stop. It would stop flapping its wings while it was in the air. After it flapped a few times, it would fold its wings. It would only open them back up with it began to fall a little. Gravity affects birds too.

I guess you now think I'm crazy and frivolous, and I am a bit. How could a bird who flew a little differently affect me so much? Well, it made me think of the other birds. The ones that are just a part of the group. Yes, they are more graceful than this specific bird. However, who is enjoying flying more? The birds who all work hard and are like practiced dancers, or the one who's enjoying just dancing? Those birds work hard, but they never get the taste of their own art. This bird, he knows what flying is like. He knows what floating is like. He takes advantage of the life he has been given. If he were human, I would like him greatly.

Maybe this bird isn't an individual. Maybe he's just an odd bird who broke his wings and needs to rest them while flying. Maybe he's a bird that doesn't know how to fly well. Maybe he is an egoistic bird that the others are just sick of. Maybe he thinks his cool flying skills will win over the ladies. Maybe I dug too deep into this. Maybe, but maybe not.

1 comment:

  1. Great Job! It's so amazing that something so simple can make us wonder so much! Hats off to you! :)

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