Of Birds and Rainbows

Nothing says “hope” more brightly than rainbows. I love rainbows; there is something magical about the colors, the perfect curve and of course the symbolic representation that the sun is smiling through the clouds. Would rainbows be as pretty if we didn’t have to bear the rain and dark clouds? I doubt it.

Recently I have been fascinated by birds – not any particular kind , just the crows perching on the wires, or seagulls playing in the fields or occasionally an eagle soaring by or chirping of the sparrows. There is something liberating when birds spread their wings, when they sing and communicate with each other – happy to be just what they are. A crow doesn’t compete to sing like a cuckoo or be pretty like a dove, just “being”, loving life and their very existence. Maybe because they are so elusive, giving you just a glimpse of their personalities that they keep me asking for more.

Walking my son to school, on some rare sunny days , I feel so blessed to tune in to the songs of the birds hiding somewhere within the branches of swaying  trees or the stern and  majestic mountains staring down at me. I love not talking, not thinking, just being present and being aware of my every movement. The 15 minutes walk is my meditation – something that charges me to smile and face the brand new 24 hours ahead of me.

I have realized that I have been complaining less – comparing less – not with others but my own situation . A rainy and gloomy day doesn’t affect me as much because I don’t accumulate the cloudy days of yesterday or the weather forecast of tomorrow. It is rainy and cloudy today period. 

Life is definitely easier and happier once you start to live in the present. Of course, I am still in the nascent stage and have a long way to go – but then I am not looking in the future either. It is now and here and I am taking baby steps to keep it that way.