Posted By FarmerJ on March 11, 2010

Twice a year, we get to watch the amazing phenomenon of geese migrating.  The Farmstead seems to be right in their flight path, because literally, thousands upon thousands of geese fly overhead ~ south when winter is approaching, and north to signify the blessings of spring are coming.

It’s that time again.  And, it’s a great opportunity to pause and observe just how perfectly brilliant God created these creatures, and to take note of what I can learn from them.  I do this during each migration period, but as with many things, I can sometimes start out strong but as time goes on, I can tend to slack off a little, too.  Perhaps this bi-annual reminder is all part of God’s intention?!

Miss Abigail and I set out to do our morning ritual of going outside so she could do her business.  As soon as I opened the door, the sound was incredible.  If you’ve never heard thousands of geese honking at the same time, you’re missing something rather spectacular.  The only thing I can remotely think of to compare it to ~ although I’ve not experienced it myself ~ is the honking of cars in downtown New York City during rush hour.  [Does rush hour ever end in NYC?]  But then, you know the honking of the geese has to be so much more spectacular because they are of God’s creation, not some obnoxious man-made mechanism.

Usually, I keep my eye on Abigail to observe whether she does all of her business, or just part of it.  Did the business get done right, or is there some sort of issue ~ you know, what every attentive parent does.  But, not this morning.  The ruckus was just too magnificent not to pause and take note.  This particular flock easily spanned over a mile in the sky.  Literally, they were farther than the eye could see.

I always marvel at their flight formations, and how they are continually shifting  their patterns and positions, making adjustments for the conditions they are confronted with.  At first pause, all of the honks sound the same.  But, when you really listen and observe, you can distinguish the honks of distress versus the honks of encouragement versus the administrative honks.

It seems as time goes on, people are becoming less and less tolerant of each other.  More and more, it seems, people are becoming impatient, self-centered and aloof.  I refer back to my opinion that perhaps it’s God’s intention to use the geese as a reminder of how we should act ~ and He knows we need the reminder more than once!

Lessons From Geese

Fact 1

As each goose flaps its wings it creates an uplift for the birds that follow.  By flying in a “V” formation, the whole flock adds 71% greater flying range than if each bird flew alone.

Lesson:

People who share a common direction and sense of community can get where they are going quicker and easier because they are traveling on the thrust of one another.

Fact 2

When a goose falls out of formation, it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of flying alone. It quickly moves back into formation to take advantage of the lifting power of the bird immediately in front of it.

Lesson:

If we have as much sense as a goose, we stay in formation with those headed where we want to go. We are willing to accept their help and give out help to others.

Fact 3

When the lead goose tires, it rotates back into the formation and another goose flies to the point position.

Lesson:

It pays to take turns doing the hard tasks and sharing leadership. As with geese, people are interdependent on each others’ skills, capabilities and unique arrangements of gifts, talents or resources.

Fact 4

The geese flying in formation honk to encourage those up front to keep up their speed.

Lesson:

We need to make sure our honking is encouraging. In groups where there is encouragement, the production is much greater. The power of encouragement (to stand by one’s heart or core values and encourage the heart and core of others) is the quality of honking we seek.

Fact 5

When a goose gets sick, wounded or shot down, two geese drop out of formation and follow it down to help and protect it. They stay with it until it dies or is able to fly again. Then, they launch out with another formation or catch up with the flock.

Lesson:

If we have as much sense as geese, we will stand by each other in difficult times as well as when we are strong.

These are all valuable lessons to learn ~ but, for some reason, Fact 4 and the lesson to learn from it speaks the loudest [actually, it screams!] right now.  Perhaps it has to do with the seemingly continual degradation of core values throughout today’s society.  I don’t know.

But!  What I’d like to know is this ~ which goose is the OIC (Officer in Command) and is responsible for planning the execution of such an amazing operational flight mission.  How does that goose get chosen?  Does that rank come with age and experience?  And, does it take all night to complete the flight briefings and obtain a VOCO?

Honk!  Honk!  Honk! ♥

PS:  “Lessons from Geese” was transcribed from a speech given by Angeles Arrien at the 1991 Organizational Development Network and was based on the work of Milton Olson.

Categories: Plainly Ponderings
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