Our jolly band of netwalkers last week were treated to a rest stop to admire the wonderful sight of a heron fishing on the lake. (Alas I didn’t have my camera on friday so this was one I encountered at Kew Gardens last week).
At the end of the walk, when we were reviewing what we had got from the session, one of our netwalkers was particularly struck by the encounter with our feathered friend.
She read in it a very apt message, to slow everything down and be still – something the heron can do rather too well. This particular bird was standing so still that William (adorable 6 year old son to Netwalker-to- Know Clare Brown) didn’t think he was real at first.
Much can be learnt from the natural world and I really do believe everything we need is out there if only we have eyes to notice. Noticing the signs around us requires that our attention be placed on the outside and not always consumed by the inner world of our thoughts and feelings. If we are wrapped up in the haste and busy-ness of life then it can be all too easy to miss these moments of beauty and wonder.
So as you go through your days this week perhaps take a little time to notice even more often the natural world around us and how it can brighten up the dreariest of days and speak the messages our unconscious aches to hear.
So from the heron perhaps that message would be….Be still, wait for the right moment to act and then do so swiftly and with purpose.
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Great post, Elizabeth. I like the message you’ve drawn from this; most insightful.
What a handsome fellow he is too – do you think he knew he was ‘on camera’?!
He is a bit of a poser isn’t he?!
Glad you like the post, lovely as ever to have your wonderful energy on the walk and thanks again for great coaching today x