A Vignette:
Birds of a Feather
Sliding my lunch plate toward the center of the patio table, I leaned back in the chair. Elbows perched on the armrests, legs propped on the table’s edge.
I stared toward the empty street lost in thought. Tickling fingers brought me back to awareness as I caught myself circulating their tips against the counterparts of the opposing hand.
I’ve noticed a friend doing this same motion in contemplative moments. It has me pondering …
Do birds of a feather flock together (led by activity) or do birds of a feather become a flock (revealed by being)?
Maybe.
“Maybe—A Taoist Parable1
There was once an old man who lived on the edge of the frontier.
One day his horse ran away.
“Such bad luck,” the neighbors said.
“Maybe,” the old man replied.
The next morning, the horse returned — bringing with it three wild horses.
“How wonderful,” the neighbors exclaimed.
“Maybe,” said the old man.
The following day, his son tried to ride one of the wild horses. He was thrown, and broke his leg.
“What misfortune,” said the neighbors.
“Maybe,” answered the old man.
The day after, military officials came to draft young men into the army. Seeing the son’s broken leg, they passed him by.
“How fortunate,” the neighbors said.
“Maybe,” said the old man.
Pondering on “Maybe“
I can appreciate the use of “maybe” for we rarely know the bigger picture in the midst of our current situation. Time must unfold. Assessment before all the possibilities are present is a judgment. A way of resisting life as it has come in that moment.
Is there a way to judge only as good and allow all that is not to freely flow, releasing and letting go?
Like lying on your back and floating down a river, allowing it to carry you toward the ocean of God’s fullness. Where the separated self will once again merge into the grandness from whence we came.
This union can be experienced at any time along the way. But when we resist, grabbing at tree limbs and boulders scattered along the river’s bank, trying to swim upstream to the familiarity to which we believe to be true … we impede the natural flow.
It is our resistance that brings about our hardship. All of life is about learning to let go. Trusting to let go. Giving yourself over to your true self, your highest self. Your guide within, God within.
“Be still, and know that I Am God.” – Psalm 46:10
“The more I learn, the more I realize how much I don’t know.” – Aristotle
“Here is the conclusion of the matter: Revere [devote Oneself to] God and keep his commands [love One another], for this is the duty [purpose] of all mankind.” – Ecclesiastes 12:13
Is anything else needed, or might all else be vanity?
Maybe.
Blog Photo by Elizabeth Tr. Armstrong from Pexels
1 “Maybe — a Taoist Parable,” Maybe, re-accessed September 10, 2026
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