It was New Year's morning. I awoke to an enormous shadow fleeting over the window.
The sunlight blotted out for just a moment. An eagle passed overhead. Living on the Mississippi River in Minnesota, eagles are not uncommon. I even had to train my little Shipoo dog indoors, as it was unsafe to let her outside alone.
What was unusual about this day was what happened next. We have had a plethora of crows in our yard for years. There have been so many crows that they scared away all the other smaller birds. The crows have made my yard their domain. Their territory to hang out. They are cunning and intelligent. Crows are known to recognize human faces even.
The female eagle had shown up the day before and sat in an old oak tree on the riverbank on our property, serenely watching squirrels and the other riffraff of the neighborhood. Today, she chose the tall, mighty north pine tree. Not just any pine tree, the crows’ pine tree. She gracefully, delicately alighted to the topmost branches. She simply sat.
Then, the cawing ensued. I watched in awe. I never heard such a ruckus as three crows circled the tall pine tree and dove at the eagle. They tried every tactic: intimidation, jeering, startling, fear, mockery. And yet. The eagle simply sat. Peaceful. Serene. Calm. Not swayed by the enemy at all. She didn’t even turn her head to give them notice.
What a way to start 2024. I have had seven years of darkness and grief. After years of waiting to figure out my health and myself, it’s time to finally step out of all of the tactics of intimidation and fear and be like an eagle. It’s time to break free from imposter syndrome and all those crows that mock us, telling us that we don’t measure up and that we’ll never be as good as “fill in the blank.”
It’s time to take back our peace and our strength. It’s time to soar to new heights. I will hold my head high no matter what comes my way this year I’m ready to leap.
