In 1941, the whooping crane was declared a bird destined for extinction; its numbers had been reduced to a tenuous 15 birds.  As of 2011, there were an estimated 437 birds in the wild and 165 in captivity.  In spite of this remarkable but limited recovery, the whooping crane’s future is still precarious.  The threat of habitat loss, the dangers of unpredictable weather, and the hazards of power line death traps, continue to be some of the perils that threaten its long-term survival.

As I was writing the poem, it seemed as if the whooping crane had come into my life like a totem animal appearing in a dream.  What was its message?  I watched videos of whooping cranes in flight, their long necks pointed straight out, powerful and determined, flying into the wind on their migration south.  Twice a year they flew a brave journey of over 4000 kilometres.  Their incredible migration odyssey seemed like a metaphor for life.  

Sometimes  existence  feels  like a long journey of flying against the wind.  But, just as the whooping crane has survived against all odds, so do I have to persevere  on my life’s journey, even when obstacles arise.  Giving up on life is not an option.  We all have been given instincts and intuition as our own internal compass to guide us on how to navigate  and choose our paths in life.

I began to wish I could one day see this elusive bird I was researching--a very remote possibility, considering I live in southern Ontario. Then, a few days ago, I learned that my brother-in-law had been offered a great job opportunity in Calgary. Suddenly, he and his wife and children would have to “migrate” from Ontario to Alberta.  My husband and I were sad they would be living so far away from us, but we realized we now had a reason to take our own journey to Alberta one day, a trip we had never before intended to take.  The synchronistic part of this story is that the summer nesting ground for the whooping crane is Wood Buffalo National Park, located in northeastern Alberta.

Maybe  one day, I will meet my totem bird on my journey after all. 

Peace and love,

(watch the trailer for the documentary "Hope Takes Wing" about the work of Operation Migration>>)

©Knightwriter, June 2013