The Nature of Flying
There are infinite ways for us to connect to nature. One way is vicariously experienced through our animals, fish, insects, and birds for that matter. We find pleasure in our dog that can run like a horse. We observe fish with fins that can swim through water with speed and grace in a way that we cannot. Ant colonies fascinate us because they live in a symbiotic relationship with one another building colonies and sharing earth in harmonious ways. Bees pay homage to a queen in a hierarchy. Our domestic pets thrive on elaborate care and attention. Once left to the wild to fend for themselves they now live in palaces where their care is equal our fellow human beings or perhaps superior. What do we derive from keeping, caring for, observing, and making companion to these creatures? The answer is individual and personal. How do these creatures affect your existence, share in your space or cohabitate with you and why?
Research that dates back some 15,000 years indicates that the simple act of petting, touching, and caring for animals raises levels of feel-good hormones such as serotonin in the human body. Even health and longevity have known to be greater as a result of the relationship between humans and animals.
Some people prefer dogs, some are cat people, and there are those who have a liking to reptiles. However reptiles are reported to not have the ability to form bonds and attachments like some of our furrier or feathered friends.
My personal pets of choice are birds. I think that perhaps one of the reasons I love birds is because they have something I do not, wings. From the time I was very young I had a kinship with birds, from my first parakeet to the Cockatoo of 11 years. Unfortunately keeping a domestic bird means prison, which is the equivalent of a cage. Sometimes we keep birds in cages to protect us from harm, but actually the cage in some cases keeps the bird from harming themselves especially when in environments that are not exactly natural to their specific habitat.
Just a year ago when the opportunity to raise doves presented itself to me, I flew with it! I discovered something I had never known, the homing dove. Now, for the first time in my history of avian husbandry I discovered the joy of letting go and releasing birds that would come home again. Each morning when I awake I go out and release them to the sky. The golden light of the morning catches under their wings as they fly around and around above the house and with fell swoops and sudden turns in the wind as they circle and shift and swap positions in the air rounding the property maybe 30 times before they expire. Then in a sudden fall from the sky in a winged migration, white birds float down from the trees in a dancing circled pattern landing on the rooftop, a pit stop to their loft entrance. The afternoon will bring yet another flight, only maybe at a distance this time, 5, 10, 20 to 40 miles from home, which is good exercise for these trained athletes. And with the help of their natural compass, the magnetic of the earth, sight and sound, they are instinctively driven on their path ,flying at speeds from 20 to 40 miles an hour to their destination, home, where their loft is.
The dove represents the wayfarer of the sky, a being who though it belongs to the earth is capable of dwelling in the skies. They can fly to great heights and in a moments notice sour into the clouds, joining with their flock in a harmonious fashion. Time and time again I am inspired by how the entire flock circles back to include the one bird that goes astray instead of just heading out and leaving it behind.
The doves are a model of a community, a flock that flies together, going the same direction with one common purpose, the purpose being to find their bearings and head home. Back at their loft they have a family and young ones awaiting them. They are the parents, the teachers, the mentors, and the elders. In the loft they each have their place, perch, and for some, a nest. It is these things that motivate the dove to come home. The doves are quite harmonious, although there is an occasional fuss over a perch or nest, most squabbles are settled without injury and peace is established once more.
The only doves suitable for "Dove Releases" are well trained Rock Doves, otherwise know as Homing/Dove Pigeons. Homing pigeons are far from the pigeon at the park or what is referred to as the Feral Pigeon. Homing pigeons are to Feral Pigeons as thoroughbred horses are to plow horses. Homing pigeons can find their way home from distances as far 1000 miles. Generally in the Dove Release business, white doves are released only as far as 50-60 miles from their home. However, the homing pigeon has been doing this for centuries all the way back to times when they were used to carry messages and race in contests. In 43 B.C. Brutus used homing pigeons to communicate with his consuls during a siege by Mark Antony.
There are many varieties of Rock Doves. All Homing Pigeons, Turtlenecks, Mourning Doves, Ring-necks and Diamond Doves are Rock Doves. However, not all Rock Doves are Homing Pigeons. This means that they could not find their way home if released in the wild. Homing Pigeons can find their way home! This is why only Homing Pigeons should be used for Dove Releases. Doves sold in pet stores should never be used in Dove Releases- even if the pet store says they are Homing Pigeons. These pet store doves will only fly to the nearest tree and struggle to survive in an environment where predators are common and they have little defense against them. If it is nature we are interested in, then it would be a better choice to give an animal a habitat where it has a chance to not only survive but thrive.
We gain something unexplainable by watching these pure white birds fly. Perhaps it is the same feel-good hormones we receive from petting a dog, or warming up to our cat. Some will say they feel uplifted and a sense of peace upon witnessing a dove release.
On Christmas Day I surprised some friends and brought my flock of doves. The release came after a borage of high tech gifts. It was a relief from all the sound and sensory overload of extravagant gadgets and commotion. Everyone stopped doing what they were doing and the kids each took a dove into hand and released them. We all watched, even if just for a few minutes, their flight on a cool winter's day in a clear blue sky. Later someone said it was kind of the calm between the storm of Christmas anxiety and it was a welcome relief, a true release for all.
Certain circumstances lend themselves to having physical contact with animals that can actually facilitate a healing experience. By holding and releasing doves in the name of a deceased loved one, the bereaved individual can physically, emotionally, and spiritually experience a kind of letting go that may be necessary in the grieving process.
For the married couple, the letting go of doves represents an ancient ritual symbolizing the many elements of married life. Again through symbolism, when the doves are released so too the wedding couple begins their journey together as a couple flying together yet not so near to each other to disrupt the flight of the other.
We are fortunate to share this planet with so many wonderful whimsical creatures of nature, such as the dove. It is my hope that we will continue to live, learn, and be inspired by these birds in ways that teach us about the harmony and nature of the earth. When we allow ourselves to touch, hold, care for and release these lovely white birds, we gain something in return that we did not expect. Or maybe it is that these creatures force us to stop if even just for a few minutes and take notice of them and their unique role on this planet?
White doves have long been recognized universally as a symbol of peace and goodwill. Forever moving forward, the dove is a true hope for the future-a future of peace.
Watch the doves as they soar
Rising up
above and beyond
where they have been
together as a flock
in our earth community
we will find our way back home to our natural and harmonious existence.
And together
we will fly...
and no bird will be left behind...
Julia Gaunt has lived in Asheville for 25 years. She shares her home with her husband, daughter, weekend grandson, two dogs, a cat, three inside birds, and 60 homing doves. For more information, contact: A Spirit's Wings Dove Releases www.aspiritswings.com or phone 828-582-9115
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About the Author - Julia Gaunt
Contact Julia Gaunt:
A Spirit's Wings White Dove Release
aspiritswings.com
