Life Matters - December 11, 2024
‘’They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings as eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.’’ (Isaiah 40:31) The soaring wings, bearing the eagle on every slight updraft to lofty heights searching for prey with its piercingly good eyesight, wings then folding upward as the eagle plunges toward earth and the prey it spotted, gives the impression of freedom as it glides, of seeing clearly from its lofty advantage, and of fear-invoking power as it plunges. Those characteristics; of lofty observational advantage coupled with power, led to the American Bald Eagle becoming America’s national bird and the symbol on its seal as of June 20, 1782. America’s wild turkey lost that spot by only one vote, according to the historical record.
‘’The wild turkey’’ Benjamin Franklin argued, ‘’is a much more respectable bird and a true native of America.’’ Franklin conceded that the turkey was ‘’a little vain and silly,’’ but maintained that it was nevertheless ‘’a bird of courage’’ that ‘’would not hesitate to attack a grenadier of the British guards who should presume to invade his farmyard with a red coat on.’’
The difference, of course, is that the turkey’s attack is one of defense, while the eagle’s plunge is an attack from a position of offense, a decidedly more advantageous and desirable position to attack from. While the turkey may desperately flutter, flog, spur, and peck, the eagle swoops, then plunge-drops, its sharp eyes piercing, its sharp talons open and ready, its sharply hooked beak poised to tear into the flesh of its prey. The eagle may deem it unwise to attack a British ‘’redcoat’’ but if it were to do so the sight would be sure to strike fear into the stoutest of Brit. And I believe I can safely say, ‘’the rest of us could sympathize.’’
I have great respect for America’s wild turkey. Sometime in the first half of the 1980s, on a crisp sunny day in late fall, while still-hunting for whitetail buck in the mountainous region of midwestern Pennsylvania, I eased into a small natural grassy clearing with a flat boulder centerpiece just the right height to sit on and plenty large enough (approx. 8 ft. in diameter) to spread out my lunch. Being hungry I stealthily approached the rock and was proceeding to spread my lunch on said rock when its yonder side suddenly exploded with a flurry of feathers and the flopping of wings. It’s hard to say which was the more startled, myself or the turkey, but as I watched the glittering-in-the-sun, agile-for-his-size bird fly the 600 (more or less) yards across the valley to yonder mountainside, I was fascinated by the startled speed with which he had left the clearing behind, cleared the treetops and the valley to settle among the trees on yonder ridge.
The wild turkey can fly well. When its fight or flight mode is triggered it will invariably fly. When a triggered gun brings it down, its delectable meat, when properly prepared, speaks well for its clean diet of berries, seeds, bugs, nuts, and the occasional greens. The wild turkey has its place in nature and is deserving of respect.
In the study of biologically inspired engineering, or biomimetics, however, the tasty turkey does not excel. Aerospace engineering can be traced back to the study of bird anatomy, shaping the way we consider navigation, speed, fuel efficiency, aircraft maneuverability, its stability, noise, and safety. Biomimicry has studied the wing structure, the feather-tilt, the flexibility and the feather placement of the albatross, the peregrine falcon, the eagle, and even the minute detail of the little hummingbird, (the little bird can zip forward, backward, right, left, up, down and hover, making it central to the study of helicopters) among others. But the turkey has not contributed much to flight engineering, unless in the area of what not to do. The turkey has its place, still, it never soars with the eagles.
Waiting upon the Lord. Anyone is capable of vague and vacuous judgements, statements, job projections, and retractions. Anyone is capable of slander, gossip, of evil speaking. Anyone is capable of false prophecy, of calling evil good and good evil. Of saying peace, peace when God has removed it. Or of speaking judgement into a situation that God Himself has not yet called.
Wait upon the Lord. They that wait are given strength. They are given a panoramic view. Discernment from a place of God-given heights. From a place of dependence upon God.
A place to which we give ourselves, and God supplies the wings.
Life Matters!