Kay Watkins: THE SYNCHRONIZED PELICAN FLYING TEAM

Kay Watkins

THE SYNCHRONIZED PELICAN FLYING TEAM

Make its ascent & descent upon the wind
In search of fish, a resting place for the night….
And if finding neither
They move on
Yes, they move on
And on
And on
But are okay
Because they are together

May we, too, find our family, our friends, our belonging with others…
To give each other support
Sharing strength & encouragement…
That we, too will find the wind to funnel & be funneled to keep us afloat in the sky & get whatever we need… together.

Shalom

Side note:
Why do pelicans fly in a straight line?
A: It turns out that Paul Ehrlich answered this very question in a 1988 guide to the birds of Stanford University, of all places: “Skimming permits the birds to take advantage of an aerodynamic phenomenon known as ‘ground effect. Like many other birds, pelicans often fly in V-formation.

Why do geese fly in formation?
Geese (& pelicans) flying in classic V formation. Scientists have determined that the V-shaped formation that geese use when migrating serves two important purposes: First, it conserves their energy. Each bird flies slightly above the bird in front of them, resulting in a reduction of wind resistance.

They also take turns leading, dropping back when tiring to let another lead, thereby regaining strength.

Photo & poem
by Kay Watkins
after a day at the beach on Tybee Island 12/6/2022