Cloud Owl

Luxury – ND #81

Posted on by Lisa Weikel Leave a comment
Cloud Owl in Flight – Photo: L. Weikel

Luxury

While taking a walk early this evening, the tranquility of our lives, in this moment, was squarely in Karl’s and my awareness. Our greatest discomfort was how much colder it was tonight than it was a few days ago. We had the luxury of walking in silence, feeling awe as a hawk flew right across our path seemingly to get a better view of us, and delighting in a flock of over two dozen robins hopping around on the neighbor’s lawn.

Of course, we were thinking about the upheaval of the lives of Ukrainians who, quite possibly, may have taken a walk similar to ours less than a week ago. But now they’re refugees. Or quite possibly guerilla soldiers, dedicated to defending their country and willing to lose it all rather than succumb to Putin’s regime.

Even though we were, indeed, walking in silence (at least initially), I know our thoughts turned toward Ukraine at the same time without us having to exchange a single word. We just stopped, looked into each other’s eyes, and sighed.

Hawk on our left – Photo: L. Weikel

Target Practice

We sighed because all of a sudden the sounds and silence of nature were shredded by the rat-a-tat-tat of a rapid-fire weapon. I don’t know enough about firearms to know whether what we heard was an automatic or a semi-automatic – but I do know it’s not the type of gun that hunters use to shoot deer. Ah, there it was again. Across the hills from us, another burst of staccato gunfire. And then more. At least another six to ten bursts of bullets echoed through the countryside as we made our way up the hill.

Other than being used for target practice, we all know, deep down, what those types of guns are designed to ‘hunt.’ And the images of Ukrainian grandmothers arming themselves with Kalishnakovs and AK-47s springs to mind unbidden. What were they doing last week at this time?

Hawk taking flight and crossing before us – Photo: L. Weikel

Looking Up

At the same time that we hear those gunshots slashing at our peace, we look up and toward the west, only to find a massive cloud owl taking wing across the sky.

It could, of course, be a harbinger of death on the wind. Or it could be a symbol of protection. My first reaction when I saw the Cloud Owl was a sense of gratitude and familiarity, the appearance of a cherished friend and ally. To me, the Cloud Owl looks like it’s speeding off, intent upon fulfilling a mission. So I thanked it for appearing to us and asked it to bring protection and comfort to whomever needs it.

Cloud Owl in context – Photo: L. Weikel

 

(T+81)

Natural Distraction – Day 1008

Posted on by Lisa Weikel Leave a comment
Cloud Raptor Hovering Above Us All – Photo: L. Weikel

Natural Distraction

There’s a lot going on in the world right now. I realize I’m stating the obvious. But it’s rough to put our attention anywhere where news of the outside world can seep in because it’s all so overwhelming. And while I sit here contemplating the most recent headlines and questioning whether I want to write about anything of consequence, I find myself scrolling through the photos on my phone. Nah. My thoughts are irrelevant; but the sun and clouds? They offer a perfect natural distraction.

I’m not sure what was going on in the atmosphere toward dusk this evening. The clouds were doing all sorts of things, seemingly indecisive of which way they wanted to go, what texture or color they wanted to embody, or how they wanted to express themselves. At times rippling like gentle currents in a stream and at others creating vapor creatures covering vast swaths of the sky, it was as if the sky was a cosmic doodle notebook.

Repeating Faces and Textures – Photo: L. Weikel

Doodles

Yes, sometimes when we have a need to distract ourselves from thinking about something we have no power to influence or remedy, it’s helpful to doodle. Today (just today!) there’s so much occurring around the world and in our country that feels so ominous yet remains essentially out of our reach: the recent earthquakes in Alaska and Haiti (why does this island nation suffer so many relentless tragedies?), the horrific crumbling of Afghanistan to Taliban rule – including the long and short term vengeance that will probably be meted out to those who sought equality and freedom; and the depressing surge of Covid-19 delta cases claiming the health and lives of more and more (primarily) younger people, many of whom thought they were invincible.

And that’s just three ‘huge deals’ playing out on the world stage. We all know there are many more ongoing issues – wildfires, approaching hurricanes, droughts, floods. It’s hard not to think we’re in some sick disaster movie.

Roadrunner? Running Pheasant? – Photo: L. Weikel

We Have Beauty

We have zero control over how most of these issues play out. It’s beyond upsetting to contemplate the suffering of so many and feel…powerless. And so I’m sharing the beauty that played out in the skies above me today.

Spirit was doodling – giving us a natural distraction. Perhaps we’ll each be inspired tomorrow on how we can make a difference in our unique sphere of influence. If nothing else, keeping ourselves from despair and envisioning beauty and joy surely has to have power of its own?

(T-103)

Late Nights – Day 987

Posted on by Lisa Weikel Leave a comment
Swooping Cloud Owl – Photo: L. Weikel

Late Nights

I’ve had a couple of really late nights recently. I was up into the wee hours of the morning last night writing my post and yet I didn’t make up for lost time (if that’s even possible) by sleeping in.

While I did manage to squeeze in a walk – and a longer one at that – it nevertheless felt like my timing was off all day. For instance, most of the day there was a rather reliable blanket of overcast lurking above. It managed to shield us from the direct rays of the sun for most of the day, but yowza! When the sun did break through, the air instantaneously turned even swampier than a moment earlier. The air became so thick it was almost like breathing jello through a straw.

I waited and waited, keeping an eye on the weather and hoping something would shift enough to make a ‘walk-around’ an activity that would make either Spartacus or me keel over. Finally, as the afternoon became late, we decided to set out. We even decided, perhaps impulsively, to do a walk-about instead.

Naturally, I kid you not, as soon as Spartacus and I started down our flagstone path, a handful of fat splats of rain fell from the sky. Internally I shrugged. I’d waited long enough. A glance at the variations of darkness mottling the sky above me suggested that these were mere drops squeezed from the clouds above because there simply was no more room at the inn.

Chanced It – Worth It

We decided to set out on our walk in spite of those aggressively hefty raindrops nipping at our heels. It was a wise decision, as not a single drop fell upon us again for the entire four miles.

In fact, as we crested Fox Kit hill (I just named it for this lovely one from exactly three months ago) the skies had cleared and magnificent thunderheads were dressing up in the distance. One, however, looked distinctly like an owl swooping in on us.

I’m partial to owls, as many of you know. They, like hawks, are messengers of a sort.

Judging from the size of this Cloud Owl, I’d say if there’s any correlation between messenger and message, I’d better pay attention.

So I’m going to address the immediate message before me: I’m heading to bed. If there’s more to this message, I trust revelations will continue (if I’m lucky).

Here’s to all of us as we head into this final week of July 2021. I wonder what will be revealed this week.

Another Perspective of Swooping Cloud Owl – Photo: L. Weikel

(T-124)