Traditions: Geese Salutations

Safe Travels!

Each fall, like clockwork, the geese start to form their groups of flight-mates. I love to watch them do a few dry runs in the area. Finally, when they have consulted some inner Farmer's Almanc, they determine the perfect time to fly south so as not to remain in the north beyond the "too cold and wintery" point. You can often tell when they are on their final run south, because their honking is fairly loud and jubilant. They do not seem hurried or worried...and in fact, they seem quite happy to be embarking on their annual trek to warmer climes.

Whenever I am lucky enough to be outside when a group of southward-bound geese are honking loudly overhead, I always stop and yell up to the sky. My usual salutation is something like "Goodbye! Safe Travels! See You In the Spring!".  When they finally return in the spring, I welcome them back with the same gusto. My children will join me in my salutations, and then we talk about the stops they are likely to make along the way. Like everything else in our lives, this is a "teachable moment". Each moment provides an opportunity to learn something new, or to perhaps think about something we already knew in a different way.

Last year, when I was teaching at a local school, I had recess duty outside when a flock of geese was heading southward. I happened to be talking to a fellow teacher when it happened, and yet instinct kicked in. I stopped my conversation and yelled up to the geese. The teacher was, to put it mildly, taken aback. He quickly ended the conversation and walked away, clearly wondering about my sanity (or possibly about the appropriateness of acting so "childishly").

I had a bit of a think about that later. Do you think it crossed his mind again later that day to think about the carefree-ness of my action?  Do you think it made him think...even just a little...about those geese? To maybe, just for a second, appreciate the cycles all around us?

If not, then I feel sorry for him...but I couldn't dwell on pity for the man for very long, because I was too busy silently wishing the geese well, safe journeys, an enjoyable winter in the south, and a safe and happy return. I can't help but wonder if my children will run into a similar scenario one day. How will they feel when  they realize that not all of the world shares in our appreciation of the wonders in the world?

I hope I will be able to instill within them the realization that everyone walks to the beat of their own drums. We cannot allow others to bring us down. Instead, we must hold fast to those things that bring us joy, love, and a connection to All That Is.  If that means shouting up to the geese in the middle of a conversation, then so be it.