Thanks to the seagulls

A few weeks ago, right around the time of Sandy, Montreal got a few very very windy days... but nothing to complain about compared to how other people were hit by Sandy...

On my bus ride back home I was looking out the windows has I had just finished my book.  I love to look out the windows on any ride but on that day, it was quite something...  to see people walking in that wind...  some were pushed by it and others had to go against it...  you could see people taking this inclined forward facing position...  holding their hat or scarf so that it does not fly away...  Pretty much everyone was facing down... looking at the sidewalk... as if it could fly away!!! People at that time around public transit or walking outside are usually getting back home in a hurry to make supper or just chill out...  and they walk fast and do not seem very much relaxed but on that day it was even worse...  it seemed like they were running away from something instead of running to something!  It was very weird!

You could see the odd plastic bag or newspaper being pushed away and dance with the wind...

You could see the tree leaves flying off from the branches... this is normally when the leaves fall of the tree here in our northern country anyway...  but instead of a slow fall down on the grass (which is quite graceful), they were pushed away...  and you could see them flying up in the air, even higher then they could be found while attached to the trees.

Everything seemed to be disturbed by that wind... so powerful! The natural order of things seemed deranged... 

Everything but the seagulls!

As I looked up the sky to follow leaves that had escaped from a tree, I came across some seagulls that were letting themselves being carry by the wind...  Their wings were spread out, high in the air and they would just follow the wind...  go where it would carry them...  they looked free!!!
They were not battling against it and trying to go in any one direction...  and it was just wonderful to watch...  it looked as thus they were carried by the wind... and they did not seem to be afraid...

And it just struck me...  how they go with the flow...  they take advantage of the wind to experiment free flying.... they are free...  they have no worries... they have trust and faith.  Whereas we try to battle against everything that comes our way... even wind! How silly is that?  Why can we not be trusty like a seagull?  Why can we not just go with the flow?  And what good does it do that we go against the wind?  It is stronger than us anyway... and we can't control it... it is nature!  Why do most of us have to try and control everything?

Yoga and meditation have learned me to let go years ago...  have faith in life...  like a seagull...  but I do have moments of weaknesses...  it is not always easy...

So on that day, when I got out of the bus, I stopped...  stood still and took a deep breath looking up at the sky to look at the seagulls.... and I let the wind carry me...  it was an amazing feeling... this moment of quietness in all that business and in the middle of strong wind... my moment of peace... my own realization that life is good if you let it happen...

thanks to the seagulls for that important lesson they reminded me on that crazy Sandy day!

love and peace,
nath