The Hummingbird

17 September 2012

The Chief asked me to sit with hir.
  I say 'hir' because as I gazed at hir,
  I saw both male and female.

We sat opposite the fire.
  No one else was there.
  The Chief wanted to sit with me
  alone.

She asked me to quiet myself
  and focus on her.
  But I heard the flute
  and turned to see its player.
  Then, I heard the drum
  and shifted to see the drummer.

All the while, the Chief
  waited patiently for my attention.
  Then, I saw a hummingbird
  dancing lightly beside the Chief,
  flitting from one thing to the next,
  never still.

And I smiled at the restless
  commotion that is my mind,
  like the Hummingbird,
  never still.

Chief called me to him.
  Next I knew, he was hugging me,
  holding me closely,
  'All is okay,' he whispered.

Holding me, he sprang
  from the earth to soar
  above the clouds
  and among the stars.

Flying through the dark,
  peering down at the mountains,
  descending to the village amongst the trees.
  Like the Hummingbird, we hovered momentarily,
  and then flew again.

Then, Chief let loose his hold
  and I flew next to him,
  as natural and easy
  as the Hummingbird.

I saw no more than our flight,
  and fell back to sleep wondering
  if my vision had been cut short
  for I didn't understand the purpose
  of our meeting.

Until just this moment
  as I write these words,
  I did not understand.

One lesson that Hummingbird
  gifts to us
  is to relish the beauty
  of the present moment.

Sometimes, to fly unbounded among the stars,
  to witness the magnificence that is the earth,
  is just enough.