Life with a Broken Wing
Nita Gilger
There it was on the earthen dam--still, lifeless, and cold. This juvenile Great Horned Owl had been sighted in our yard the night before with what appeared to be a broken wing. Thought was given to attempting a rescue taking him to a rehabilitation aviary, but he scurried away before any move could be made. By the next morning, it was too late. I wanted to pick up this lifeless, beautiful creature and caress it, but the feast of the ants was well underway. This owl's magnificent, keen eyes were already gone. Was it his time? How did he get hurt? Did he suffer? I don't know. It is as if he came one last time near my window to say goodbye.
After years of serving in ministry, I have held death in my arms many times. It really did not take ministry to offer that. If I count all my family members whose dying I have experienced, it is a pretty long list. Add in all the other folks, young and old, whose bedsides I have attended at their passing and it is a significant number. I am certainly not unique. Most people who have lived any time at all have had to say their own farewells. Numerous times I have experienced the dying process as holy ground. There are many things sacred about it. But, when death comes too soon, uninvited, and due to tragic circumstances, there are often no answers. The vast wilderness of grief can be overwhelming, especially for parents who never thought they would have to say goodbye so soon. There is no magic wand that can take away the pain and hole in their hearts. Life is forever changed. We are left to long for meaning, comfort, and hope.
John O'Donohue offers a comforting thought in his poem, A Prayer for the Dying
May there be some beautiful surprise
Waiting for you inside death,
Something you never knew or felt,
Which with one simple touch
Absolves you of loneliness and loss,
As you quicken within the embrace
For which your soul was eternally made.
I have often wondered about creation and the meaning of life. Did we exist before time as we know it? Did we choose to come to planet earth with a certain purpose and growth plan in mind? Is life just a passage to the next beyond? I have no certain answers to these questions, but I love the questions. Life is a learning crucible. Perhaps death is too.
This morning when I awoke and ventured outside with our dog, a larger, very vocal Great Horned Owl greeted me. Its hoots were mournful and sounded full of longing. Was the juvenile owl its offspring? Was he searching the yard and trees for life? Maybe the owl came to let me know that life carries on even with broken wings. Some broken wings heal. Some do not -- at least on this side of heaven. For today and beyond, I hope to live with a quickening embrace of the gifts of life for which my soul was made. Whether broken or whole, I trust that I will be held in the Divine embrace of a love that makes all things new. A love that somehow includes even the broken wings, in ways I do not yet understand.
Also by Nita Gilger:
Loving in the Shadow of Alzheimer's
Learning from Rock Owls in Bryce Canyon
A Call to Deeper Places: The Owl as My Teacher
God, Are You Looking for Me?
The Turtle My Teacher
Trying to Understand the Practice of Trusting
After years of serving in ministry, I have held death in my arms many times. It really did not take ministry to offer that. If I count all my family members whose dying I have experienced, it is a pretty long list. Add in all the other folks, young and old, whose bedsides I have attended at their passing and it is a significant number. I am certainly not unique. Most people who have lived any time at all have had to say their own farewells. Numerous times I have experienced the dying process as holy ground. There are many things sacred about it. But, when death comes too soon, uninvited, and due to tragic circumstances, there are often no answers. The vast wilderness of grief can be overwhelming, especially for parents who never thought they would have to say goodbye so soon. There is no magic wand that can take away the pain and hole in their hearts. Life is forever changed. We are left to long for meaning, comfort, and hope.
John O'Donohue offers a comforting thought in his poem, A Prayer for the Dying
May there be some beautiful surprise
Waiting for you inside death,
Something you never knew or felt,
Which with one simple touch
Absolves you of loneliness and loss,
As you quicken within the embrace
For which your soul was eternally made.
I have often wondered about creation and the meaning of life. Did we exist before time as we know it? Did we choose to come to planet earth with a certain purpose and growth plan in mind? Is life just a passage to the next beyond? I have no certain answers to these questions, but I love the questions. Life is a learning crucible. Perhaps death is too.
This morning when I awoke and ventured outside with our dog, a larger, very vocal Great Horned Owl greeted me. Its hoots were mournful and sounded full of longing. Was the juvenile owl its offspring? Was he searching the yard and trees for life? Maybe the owl came to let me know that life carries on even with broken wings. Some broken wings heal. Some do not -- at least on this side of heaven. For today and beyond, I hope to live with a quickening embrace of the gifts of life for which my soul was made. Whether broken or whole, I trust that I will be held in the Divine embrace of a love that makes all things new. A love that somehow includes even the broken wings, in ways I do not yet understand.
Also by Nita Gilger:
Loving in the Shadow of Alzheimer's
Learning from Rock Owls in Bryce Canyon
A Call to Deeper Places: The Owl as My Teacher
God, Are You Looking for Me?
The Turtle My Teacher
Trying to Understand the Practice of Trusting