Ready or Not
I remember playing hide and seek as a youngster. Whoever was “it” had to count off to the
designated number and once there, had to yell out “Ready of not; here I
come!” Of course, if you weren’t ready,
meaning that you hadn’t yet found and settled into a good hiding spot, there
was a high likelihood that you were going to be “it” for the next round. In nature the stakes are much higher; if you
are not ready, you aren’t likely to survive the coming test of winter.
I thought about this three weeks ago when I spotted a
doe and a fawn in one of the farm fields along my morning walk. They were all the way against the back fence
– at least 400 – 500 yards distance.
Their sleek reddish coats made them stand out against the emerald green alfalfa. I probably only noticed them because a small
flock of sandhill cranes, trumpeting loudly, from the same direction as the
deer invited me to take notice. I did
take note of the cranes and the deer almost at the same time because the cranes
were only about thirty feet up. I think
the cranes may have also caught the attention of the deer and caused them to
look my way.
What surprised me was that while I was a good distance
away, and not moving in their direction, the deer burst into a full throttle
run. What further caught my eye was that
the fawn, while still roughly half of the doe’s size, passed the doe and led
the bounding escape, leaping the far fence with ease. I hadn’t stopped or noticeably paid the deer
any attention, and I was so far from them that I was surprised that they
considered me enough of a threat to run for cover. It was only after thinking about it that I
wondered if the doe hadn’t used the situation as a teachable moment for the
fawn and a test of its growing awareness, size and speed.
Then, several days ago something happened that hadn’t
happened since early spring. The two
ponds that I walk by have been fairly empty of geese since the local birds had
mated up and dispersed to raise their broods.
Sure, there was an occasional loner goose seen as I passed by on some of
my summer morning walks, but for the most part the ponds have been empty and
quiet, except for the shorebirds and songbirds.
But this day as I made my way home mid-morning I
watched as family groups of geese came flying in from the west and the north and
dropped down into the ponds. When I
walked past the ponds I noted there was easily a couple hundred geese already
on the water and other family groups were still settling in. Could it be that the parent geese were both
stretching the wings of their young and also introducing them to larger flocks
after a first summer of social life limited for the most part to their immediate
family? This year’s hatchlings will need
to be comfortable with flight and flocks before the first northwest blast of
cold air blows slanting snow across the harvested cornfields.
This week’s weather has been delightful for long
mornings on the patio, drinking coffee and enjoying the hummingbird aerial
show. After pretty much abandoning our
feeder for the abundant blooms of summer, this week the hummers were back
enforce. One morning we watched four of
the miniature birds come and go. They
would buzz in, sit on the feeder and gulp and then buzz away, only to return a
few seconds later from a totally different direction. I did a little research but everything I came
across explained that hummers chase each other when it is mating time and they
are driving away rivals (not a likely explanation for late August), or they are
defending their territory. The problem
with the territory explanation is that the birds flew out and returned
together. They clearly were not driving
away rivals; they were flying and staying together. I wonder if this is a parent bird (read
‘female’ as the male does not help with raising the young) with this year’s
brood, also helping get them ready for the coming migration?
Nature underscores the reality of purpose. Everything that wildlife does, especially
with their young, has purpose and meaning.
While some may think that they are at play as humans may be, that
purpose is almost always focused on survival.
Purpose for people is at a higher level. Who are we?
Whose are we? Given my unique
gifts, blessings, talents, and urges of heart, what is that I should do that
will best serve the One who has bestowed them on me and His People? These are the questions of discernment. Those who seek the answers to these questions
will lead more joyful lives, and when the end time is at hand, they will be
ready.
O Lord, you have searched me
and known me. You know when I sit down
and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from far away. For it was you who formed my inward parts;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; that I know very
well. Psalm 139 1-2, 13-14
His Peace,
Deacon Dan
Photo by Joshua J. Cotten on Unsplash
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