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Lessons from Geese

This article was published on: 11/21/07 9:33 PM

Posted on .
Reading Time: 3 minutes

Hello friends, and welcome to this month’s Joyinmovement newsletter,

Over the past few weeks I have been fascinated by geese and
their movement patterns. I’ve enjoyed reading a wonderful poem by Mary
Oliver called “Wild Geese” and I thought for this month’s letter I’d
share with you some Lessons From Geese.  These lessons are taken from a
response to the poem by Angeles Arrien in 1991. Enjoy…….
Fact 1: As each geese flaps its wings,
it creates an “uplift” for the birds that follow.  By flying in “V”
formation, the whole flock adds 71% greater flying range than if each
bird flew alone.
Lesson:  People who share a common direction and sense of community
can get where they are going quicker and easier, because they are
traveling on the thrust of one another.
As a
movement coach I would have to add that I bet these geese are using
proper flying body mechanics and paying attention to the most efficient
ways to fly! If you have recurring injuries or chronic pain and feel
“out of formation”, seeking the guidance of a movement coach can help
get back into the “V”!
Fact 2:  When the lead goose tires, it
rotates back into the formation and another goose flies to the point
position.
Lesson:  It pays to take turns doing the hard
tasks and sharing leadership.  As with geese, people are interdependent
on each other’s skills, capabilities, and unique arrangements of gifts,
talents, or resources.
This is a fun one to consider. Do you have a
movement network you can turn to? We all have gifts, talents and
resources, and being able to connect with people and share these things
is what makes life so rich. Knowing what you know and knowing who to
turn to when you are lacking takes putting the ego aside, being bold and
asking for help, and being thankful when the answers come. I have a
wonderful network which continues to grow every year. Being of service
feels so good that it’s a pleasure when people turn to me as well.
Fact 3:  The geese flying in formation
honk to encourage those in front to keep up their speed.
Lesson:
We need to make sure our honking is encouraging.  In groups where there
is encouragement the production is greater.  The power of encouragement
(to stand by one’s heart or core values and encourage the heart and
core of others) is the quality of honking we seek.
It never ceases to amaze me how long after someone’s
helpful words have been spoken, those words still float around in my
psyche. Of course it works on the flip side too, and we all can revisit
discouraging words as well. Our words and actions are powerfully
influential. It can be easy to find something encouraging to say if only
we take a moment to think before we speak.
Fact 4:  When a goose gets sick,
wounded, or shot down, two geese drop out of formation and follow it
down to help or protect it.  They stay with it until it dies or is able
to fly again.  Then they launch out with another formation or catch up
with the flock.
Lesson:  If we have as much sense as geese, we will stand by each
other in difficult times as well as when we are strong.
It
is so easy in our competitive world to forget team spirit. Sometimes we
are the ones dropping out of formation and at other times we are the
ones offering our aid and protection. That’s life, is it not? I’d like
to think I have enough “geese” sense to recognize these times and offer
up the best of my human nature during these occasions.
As 2007 starts to wind down and as November is the
month of “giving thanks” I felt like sharing my geese lesson
observations with you. I hope they were in some small way helpful. As I
close this month’s letter I’d like to thank you all for the
encouragement I receive on a regular basis. It is truly a blessing to
have the Joyinmovement community to FLY with!
Next month we will be “Stepping Out,” so stay
tuned……….
Yours in health,
shelli
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