Each spiritual journey I take begins with the eagle flying me off and away in my mind’s eye… We soar upward, winding our way through a white vastness until I land, perched on a gathering of black wires. I notice a small black bird perched on my right, and another on my left. Raising my awareness, I realize the coil of black wire extends outward in a large circle, covered with little black birds. I am one of them, literally perched on the edge of the wire, hands behind my back like wings, waiting to leap – but to where? I look around asking for help with no words. A few birds dive into the circle and disappear. Am I to do that as well? Some part of me is afraid of the unknown. The birds wordlessly and gently urge me to give it a try. I jump lightly into the center of the circle and flutter back up to the wires. It was the answer the fear in me needed to experience to feel safe: when I jump in, I will always come back to the wires.
I look around at the other birds moving in and out of the vortex in the middle of the circle, and then slowly move forward, releasing my grip of control and the wires as I dip down through the circle, and begin flying… I become made of white feathers, elegantly and soundlessly traveling though the air to the top of a snow-covered mountain peak. I land, and through my snowy owl eyes, I see a small group of men gathered around a fire. They are covered in thick, old furs and dirty gear, focusing on the fire, not noticing me watching them. They are cold and tired, not knowing if they will survive the night. I have brought them blessings and warm wisdom, covering them with a blanket of safety and protection. Once the blessing of breath finishes releasing from my beak, I take flight once again and swoop up through the circle regaining my human-esque bird form on the gathering of wires with my dark-feathered companions.
Suddenly, I feel more powerful, confident and energized and recognize that I’m meant to dive deeply this time. Swiftly, I take a deliberate dive into the circle and become a wet and dark bird with a long and slender body and beak, diving deeper and deeper into the darkness of the vast ocean. I land on the ocean floor and see a small gathering of women around what can only be described as a water-fire: little orange and yellow flames radiating and dancing within the darkness of the deep ocean, lighting up the faces of the women surrounding it. As it becomes clear to me the women are in need of something, a small, shiny black pearl forms in my beak. Without being seen, I place the pearl of wisdom in the center of their fire and fly, impossibly fast, up through the vastness of ocean to the center of the gathering of wires, again perching in my place.
I know the drill and I am certain there is more, so I dive once again through the circle. I softly swoosh my white, long feathers and realize I am a swan landing in the marshy area of a park I knew when I was little. I see a little girl playing in the dirt, next to the water. She is me when I was four or five years old. She’s wearing my favourite blue coveralls with Whinney the Pooh on the front pocket. She seems happy enough, focused on something small within the dirt, not noticing me, the swan, watching her. She’s in need of something she doesn’t know; I feel it deeply. I bring my massive wings around her, holding space for her, protecting her and yet giving her the space to stand, to raise her hands, to stretch up toward the sky. She stands tall within herself, open, full of light, connecting with the energy all around her. Even if she doesn’t know my wings are there, it is so meaningful to be part of this moment, which suddenly fades as I am guided back up through the circle of wire.
A brief break, perched on the wire, allows me to smile at myself, at all of this. Then joy radiates through me as I swirl rapidly through the circle having become a vibrant hummingbird. It humours me to see that I land perched on the pear tree outside my current dwelling, my home. I often see hummingbirds in that tree, and now I am one of them. I look through the kitchen window with a twinkle in my eye, and suddenly I fly through the walls of the home and into the living room and hover as I gaze at the painting I created not long ago. Such joy. Happiness. Vibrancy. “More! More! More! Paint MORE!” I lovingly yell at myself like a cheerleader showing enthusiasm for that which is healing, meaningful, and vital. As my wings flutter faster than I can see, they stream a light-blanket of rainbow-like vibrancy covering my painting in what I can only describe as high-resonance love paint. I begin to fly, swirling through the whole living room showering it, brightening it up with love. And then into my bedroom where I see some stagnancy completely transformed into vibrancy. Wow! I zoom into my son’s room and swoosh it with the love paint! Into the kitchen! The dining room! Even the basement! It’s so full of love. So full of vitality and liveliness! Vibrancy like the colours of my hummingbird wings!! I land on my mountain bike seat, exasperated at how much love there is everywhere, and then – poof! – I am rising up through the circle of wires, perching in my place as a human-bird form once again, becoming calm, centered and part of the whole.
The birds perched on the wire around me have a wordless congruency, a knowing sense of similar purpose, and yet there is no room for feelings such as proud, or happy, or any other labels or emotions. It is simple. It just is. This is it. This is what we are: the feathered wisdom keepers, delivering that which is part of it all.
Written by Dee Montie
