Birds Count and The Bird Count -

If it weren't for birds, the world as we know it would not exist.

Birds are woven through our lives from sports and social media to gaming, the military and our homes. Without the birds, our economy would crash. 

Think about it.

St. Louis would be without their Cardinals, Baltimore without their Ravens and Orioles.  Who would have won the Super Bowl since Seattle wouldn't have the Seahawks?  Toronto would be without Blue Jays, Philly without the Eagles..the list goes on.

Gaming and social media would have the void of Flickr without the Flicker.  The economical hit alone would be significant if  "Angry Birds" didn't exist as greeting cards, stuffed birds, t-shirts, party decor and more have resulted from this game.

And speaking of the economy, what about the bird images with which we fill our homes?  Images of birds abound in malls and local stores. What logos would businesses use?  Just last night, I noticed the duck logo for Hilton's Homewood Suites.

What would artists paint? What might Dolly, Ferlin and Marty have sung in place of  "On the Wings of a Snow White Dove" My favorite childhood movie "The Birds" wouldn't exist. I'm unsure about The Byrds since they've the y not i.

People are described hawkish and dovish.  Carrier pigeons were integral in saving lives as they carried messages in war not that long ago and even used to carry urgently needed medications and lab specimens.  And although I'm not quite sure how I feel about it I can support a local business by sending a pigeon gram today!

Indigenous or Native eople have known the birds and everything in the natural world carries energy and messages that when we are receptive we can receive.  I was reminded of this when I read about the series of children's books created about Louis the Duck in the Homewood logo.

Children listen.  We were once all children and still are somewhere within. 

Birds count in a multitude of ways, ways easily ignored but are unfathomably important.

To me they count for the beauty and joy they bring.  This weekend, I will join others around the globe and literally count birds Feb. 14-17 as part of the 17th annual and global Great Backyard Bird Count.

Minimally take 15 minutes one day and count the birds in your yard or a specific area. Register at the GBBC site and submit your numbers.

For all the birds have done for us and continue to do, this is the least we can do for them!

-Dawn, The Good News Muse, 13 February 2014

dawn@imaginetheshift.com

Held By Trees and Nature's Kind I Receive Earth's Valentine

Robin bobbing 'bout my yard

Spring can't be too very far

Yet on the calendar page I find

It's February. Love's on our minds.

 As for me, I'll sit outside

and love what is in Wintertime.

Seeming barren and dull to some

I find magic thanks to Sun. 

For even on a cloudy day

Sun's evidence comes my way.

As plants poke their heads above

from dark below green shoots come.

Lenten rose tucked near the ground

easy to miss in leaves of brown.

Round and tender are the buds

Yet resilient just like Love.

 By taking notice, sitting still 

Listening, opening I am filled.

Held by trees and Nature's kind

I receive Earth's Valentine.

-Dawn, The Good News Muse, 6 February 2014

dawn@imaginetheshift.com

Reclaiming Touch Thanks to an Owl and Words

The softness of flannel sheets this morning reminded me of the down of an owl I held at the side of  the road recently.  The soft fur, I was surprised to find close to its body, acts as insulation ensuring warmth. I didn't know it at the time but something about the owl's down awoke my sense of touch.   

Later that day when I reached to stroke Bogey my cat's fur I knew this in my fingertips and then again when I drove along gently pulling my hair.  My sensory self was awake as I had not been prior to the owl.

The feel of flannel this morning awoke that sense again. 

Of the millions of tiny nerve endings just below the skins surface, we've 2500 nerve receptors per square centimeter in the hand or @ 1,000 per square inch if I'm doing correct math.  The point is this is a LOT of nerve endings gifting us with touch, our tactile sense.

How is it the word tactile refers to touch yet it's kin in appearance with tactic and tactician words connected to the military, war and strategy?  How is it our instrument of touch, the hand, is also connected to killing and war?

Touch wipes tears away.
Touch pulls the trigger of the gun as well as the bomb dropped by a remote plane.
The touch of a held hand conveys "You're not alone. I'm here."
The touch of an angry hand conveys control, instills fear.

How is it a multitude of modern hands today may be more aware of the touch of metal and plastic on keyboards and touch screens than skin? What are the potential long term consequences of typing and texing unaware of touch?

Touch holds the capacity for such healing and harm.

Likewise the word 'down' has so many associations other than the soft feathers I felt. How often today do we hear the stock market's down or the economy's taken a down turn?  There's 'down' as in unhappy and down as in the opposite of heaven, the hell I grew up fearing as a child, and last but not least 'down there' code for penis and vagina.

And now as Fall concludes much of Nature goes down for awhile, entering the mystery of dark Earth, for rest, rejuvenation and eventual rebirth.

I am grateful for this Mystery coded in nature, words and the birds, especially the owl, waking me to the sense of touch in my fingertips and the power of words. It's down brings me home to who I am.

(And although I'm not a huge football fan the words: Touch Down will never be the same.)

Imagine the Shift of waking up to how you use your hands and the sense of touch, of living life aware of the power in and at your fingertips.

-Dawn! The Good News Muse, 29 November 2011

dawn@imaginetheshift.com

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