36: Birds

Dear Friend,

How was your week? Did you have a chance to gander at the full moon on Thursday?  I don’t know for sure if you are an astronaut in training and/or a mystic soothsayer, but either way, perhaps you will agree, the moon is a source of powerful energy. We feel fortunate to have been camped where we could see the moon, rise and set, all week.

Frank and his camera have been very busy here at Pahranagat National Wildlife Refuge in eastern Nevada. Located adjacent to the Desert National Wildlife Refuge, which spans more than 1.6 million acres, this land is sandwiched between the Mojave Desert and the Great Basin.  

Drawings of the Pahranagat man, a watchful spirit that cares about living things, is found on petroglyphs throughout the area. The Southern Paiute, Nuwuvi, invite visitors to this sacred place, and encourage people to take the time to stop and... just listen.

There are several series of trails that meet in the area and can lead a hiker hundreds of miles if they wish to be on their feet that long. At any time of year, it is good to bring water and sun protection - at least a hat, and at this time of year during evening and early morning hours, we’re very glad to have warm coats!

Birds are here! This restored marshland is home to several resident birds like the Great Blue Heron, American Coots and Mallards.

And it is also a stop-over for hundreds of migratory birds.

These flying friends are not just the migratory waterfowl that you might expect, but also the kinds of birds that sing, the sort that squawk, tweet, soar, dive, flap - all types of feathered wonders! They know that they are welcomed here, year after year.

Vegetation is healthy and abundant.

Marshland in the desert… Cholla and barrel cactus growing at the feet of bull rushes, Joshua trees in the shadows of Cottonwoods, it makes sense that migratory birds and other creatures stop in to find resources like food and water, shelter from the weather, a place to rest along their journey. Obviously, they don’t show up here with little suitcases full of flip-flops and sunscreen. It isn’t vacation. They come here on their journey to live and work, migration is survival.

Here’s a quick question that might take a while to answer because it has to do with the entire time you’ve been on planet Earth. (If you don’t mind me asking), would you say that you’ve spent more time being outside wishing you were inside than being inside wishing you were outside? Or vice versa?

Maybe it hasn’t really crossed your mind because you ‘roll with it’ so well. Or maybe you know the answer immediately. If you sit down at the kitchen table and mull it over a bit, you might recognize that you, in fact, want to go outside right now! Or, you might find that throughout your life, you’ve actually been able to be where you want to be. That, my Friend, would be a rare and beautiful thing.

During our lifetimes, we find ourselves working inside or working outside, (the job is obviously the reason), and there are lots of obvious pros and cons to both. Is there a trick to finding a balance?

Migrating creatures know that they must move on to find a more healthy, balanced environment in order to live on and on.

In human beings, could it be that the answer to finding a healthy balance lies in a type of inner migration, adjusting expectations as needed, breathing through and adapting to unavoidable external changes, because, as surely as the sun rises and sets, changes will happen, no matter what we do?  

Thank you very much for being here to read Tracks by the Post. If you’d like to share about finding an inside/outside balance, your thoughts on migration, or just tell us how you’re doing, Please Write when you have a moment, we always enjoy hearing from you!

Sending you wishes for a week full of happy, peaceful hours.

Gently Be,

Leslie and Frank