Sometimes something we see every day becomes a soaring symbol of how to live.
While running with my friend Corrine along the Kishwaukee River, we glimpsed a lone blue heron. This bird was magnificent, calm and strong, standing in the water.
After that first encounter, we looked for the heron in the river – knowing once we saw the bird, our run was almost done. The bird became a symbol that we could finish the run strong.
Throughout summer, we greeted the bird as a friend. When summer ended, our heron sightings did, too; yet Corrine and I continued running along the Kishwaukee River.
Each spring, we searched for our heron, anticipating a feeling of hope, of summer, of the future. The heron always arrived and greeted us, acknowledging we were going the right direction.
This year, I needed that majestic signpost, reassurance I was scaling the right peak. Not seeing the heron in the water, I looked to the skies. Each morning the heron flies, lofting above me.
Traveling its own towering path, the heron ascends beyond the stationary signpost that I’ve “risen to the challenge”. Flying high overhead, the soaring heron elevates my thinking to take flight in a different direction, offering a freedom to live differently.
As I continue running this summer, herons will continue to fly over me, coaxing me to lift off on a new route.
Here’s my shout out to Corrine! Extra credit if you’re listening.
I’m Elsa Glover, and this is my perspective.
