Yesterday, as I was driving into Middletown on Rt. 9 S, I saw a
gaggle of geese in the process of waddling their way across three lanes of
highway. They were trying to cross from the right, over to the median on the
left. I can only assume that they were going to traverse the lanes going north, to get to the lake on the other side.
As does happen on highways, people were driving 65 to 70 miles an
hour. We had to round the bend in the road, so nobody could see the geese
until they were very close. I remember being in Drivers Ed class and being told
that if it's possible you could cause an accident by avoiding an animal in the
road that you should continue moving forward, hence running over the animal.
That rule never set well with me. I understood why they would teach us that but
I wasn't happy about it. And to be honest, I haven't followed that rule, always
risking an accident over blatantly killing something with my car. (There's a
story about a turtle, but I won't get into it now)
On this particular evening I happened to be driving in the left
lane. The geese hadn't gotten close enough to where I was driving yet. I
remember fighting the urge to pull my car over and guide them across the
highway like a vigilante, donning my invisible traffic director's vest and
getting them across safely. I thought twice, however, as I'm sure I would be
risking certain death. I continued moving forward with a horrified look on my
face as I saw the cars breeze past. At that point I became very angry with the
drivers who seemed not to care about the well-being of these beautiful
creatures. As I motored on down the highway, however, my perspective shifted.
It occurred to me that geese can fly. I then became annoyed with the geese.
"Hello! Guys. You have wings. Kinda ballsy to just saunter across the
highway like that, don'tcha think?"
I know that geese are very loyal birds who travel in a tight-knit
circle. It's possible that one of them was wounded or that there were babies. I
began to create a back story as to why they had chosen to walk and not fly.
Their leader's wife, the matriarch, had taken ill. The gaggle put her in the
middle of the circle and escorted her across the highway, knowing exactly what
they were risking. It was an act of sacrifice, love and bravery.
Whether that is true or not, isn't quite the point. I'm not sure
if anyone involved in that situation was happy about their choices and the
outcome. But I did come up with a moral to this story, so here it is…
If you can, if it is within your capacity, if you are equipped,
ready, willing and able. If you are presented with the choice, please don't
think twice.
FLY!
As always, thanks for reading!
Love, Light & Blessings
~Sarah Gallardo
