Dark wings in the night
I have searched through buddhism to find what is true to me, only because I ignored my native North American Blood. I followed buddhism in order to acheive stillness, and learn to calm my hostility that was sapping much of my energy. Buddhism has done me well and afforded me many friends whom appreciate my spiritual awareness. After college I went on a trek through Algonquin park (a National Nature Reserve). I was in the bush for almost 2 weeks, in that time I found my inner peace; floating down a river in a canoe, just before sunrise. That week had been filled with surprises, I was unusually adept in the forest, I shocked my guide when I was foraging for edibles, using my sense of smell. This moment of clarity on the river was different, I knew in that moment that my spirit was forever changed. It was not until I was back in civilization for a week, that the significance of that moment occured to me. I needed to re-connect with nature because of my native blood, and furthermore I studied buddhism to escape for recognizing that. Two years later, I picked up a life of travelling.
I travel from city to city sleeping under the stars. I own what can be contained in a backpack, this is the source of my freedom. The citys themselves disgust me, there is so much cment that nature barely pokes through. I am a roofer by trade so theres always plenty of work. I certainly enjoy what I do, it keeps me in phenomenal shape, my trade fullfills right livelihood, hard work, good pay. I love meeting people and I imagine most people get a kick out of me, red mohawk and all. Things are not often as they appear, and I enjoy exemplifying that. My soft spoken and polite demeanor often shocks people because I don't "look the part". Individuals are fascinating; but the masses are sedated. The ignorance I see in the citys is scary, most people stare at the ground, fearful of their own pride.
Its a fast food, gas guzzling, reality TV world out there. Little do they know, their attachments dissconnect them, morals are a thing of the past. Despite all of this, some people are absolutely amazing, but thats not what draws me to travel. Its the natural world that has managaed to survive despite our best efforts to squash it. I sleep on the riverbanks and in the forests outside the urban centres, where life is still teeming.
I remember clearly my last evening under the stars in 2004. It was late October and Cambridge was not turning out to be as pleasant as anticipated. The idiot whom I was working for dropped me off in town for a bite, then left without giving me his address. I didn't even know which direction he lived. I tried to call him but of course he didn't answer. Seperated from friends, family, and my river, I had come to Cambridge hoping to get back into the "zen" of shingling. Instead I was stuck without my poncho or tent trying to find a place to crash.
I remember thinking how their "grand" river wasn't so grand compared to St Clair river back home, but atleast it was running water. I had "acquired" some couch cushions from someones front porch to keep me atleast somewhat cleanwhile sleeping on the riverbank. Never again will I get caught out without my poncho. I could feel that rain was not far off so I aimed for the thickest part of the riverbank.
I tried to meditate for quite a while but I found that the noise coming from the beavers in the water impossible to concentrate through. There must have been a dozen beavers nearby. I had no idea how loud these creatures can be. There was one beaver that was louder than the others, I assumed he was the foreman. They felled 2 trees within the span of an hour, the rest of their time was spent dragging branches through the water to the dam. I finally fell asleep to their chatter.
I was awoken by the sound of a great wingspan landing on the water a few feet away. It was a Great Blue Heron, he was magnificent. I remained as still as possible, slowing my breath. The bird stared straight through me for what seeemed an eternity. At least a half an hour passed, I was drifting off to sleep and let my breath go, which sent my voyeur back into the night. The sound of those great wings led me though my dreams that evening.
The people of Cambridge were dissappointing to say the least; their claim to fame was having more fast food resteraunts per capita, than anyone else. I was taken there by the winds to prove that even in the midst of ignorance; the beauty and true essence of nature cannot be supressed.
posted by Sean (the buddhist) @ 9:12 AM
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