Mindfulness Meditation (For Everyday Life)

that the formation trails out far to the east, where the
early November sun is hugging the horizon. As the
first of them fly over, I am moved by the nobility and
beauty of their purposeful assembly to grab paper
and pen right there in the car and capture the pattern
as best my unskilled hand and eye are able. Rapid
strokes suffice ... they will shortly be gone.
Hundreds are in V's, but many are in more complex
arrangements. Everything is in motion. Their lines dip
and ascend with grace and harmony, like a cloth
waving in the air. It is clear that they are
communicating. Each one somehow knows where it
is, has a place in this complex and constantly
changing pattern, belongs.
I feel strangely blessed by their passage. This
moment is a gift. I have been permitted to see and
share in something I know is important, something I
am not graced with that often. Part of it is their
wildness, part is the harmony, order, and beauty they
embody.
My usual experience of time flowing is suspended
while witnessing their passing. The pattern is what
scientists call "chaotic," like cloud formations or the
shapes of trees. There is order, and within it,
embedded disorder, yet that too is orderly. For me
now, it is simply the gift of wonder and amazement.