Unexpected, Infinitely More

It is entirely dependable. It is something to expect-every time.

Expect the unexpected when you go outside. Think of it as an offer of infinitely more for each trip you take outside. My experience confirms it. No, I am not an expert, just experienced in going outside often. One of the things both of us can count on each time we go outside is more, infinitely more than we expect. We enjoy it when we get more than we expect. Getting more while outside is positive. It is enjoyable, it takes the form of a pleasant surprise. There is another thing-it is memorable.

There are side effects besides. We relax while outside. Our physical health improves, lower blood pressure, decreased stress, improved muscle tone (walking), a boosted immune system, and an over all sense of well-being. Who would not want that?

Consider the evidence. You may consider this a personal testimonial. In the last two days, I chose to go outside. The first day, Saturday, was sunny but a bit cool with a northeast wind. My outside destination was our back yard. Expecting photos of birds, I set up my blind. I put in my tripod folding chair, set up the camera and waited. A Mourning Dove called to my right (north). I never saw it. A cardinal called behind me to the east. I never saw it either. Both would have been wonderful subjects for photographs. I remained where I was. No birds moved nearby for at least the first 10 minutes. I sat, watched and listened. Chickadees came close…three of them flew into the bushes in front of me. No picture…they did not stay long. I did see a Blue Jay spying on me from a White Pine tree.

This bird knew I was inside the blind.

After 15 minutes my attention turned to the sky. Almost immediately to the west my eyes picked up movement. Large white birds…there were 5 of them flew toward me. Graceful American pelicans soared eastward against the wind. No picture, just memories, and they were beautiful. More than I expected. Better scan the visible sky was my next thought. My eyes moved southward, above our neighbor’s storage shed. Since my eyes delight in the soaring silhouette of a hawk, I looked for one. There was one. As I watched, it soared imperceptibly upward. Don’t take your eyes off a soaring hawk, especially one at a high altitude. You will not be able to find it again. Birds fly in an immense sky. For a time, this hawk was out of my sight. Patience was rewarded, when I next saw the bird, it was much higher, much smaller. The thought came to me… “What does this bird see? What does it hear? Is there a sense of peace for this extreme altitude raptor? It never came to mind to raise my camera for a picture.

Soaring hawks, gliding pelicans? Never considered either a possibility that morning. Had I missed them, my day would have been less full. It is now more than 50 hours after being mesmerized by a single hawk. Where is it today. Do you see what I mean? Time outside produces the unexpected, there are infinite possibilities. It is entirely dependable; count on it each time you go out.

There is a second day…want to hear about it? It was yesterday. Where we live, the calendar speaks spring. It snowed yesterday afternoon. The green lawn became white. Common sense indicated staying inside would be warm and more comfortable. A small voice whispered, go outside. Go outside, take your camera. Dressed in layers, I took the camera for a walk. There were 6 unexpected events…sort of one after another…and there was an absolute completely unexpected surprise.

The walk took me to a small lake near our house. Nothing notable happened on the entire distance to the lake. That’s because it takes time for our brain to disconnect from inside awareness and connect to outside awareness. Walking down hill just before the lake a Bald Eagle came into view to the west. It was number one. My camera was not ready. I watched it soar past. In the snow, my feet took me to the lake. Looking through the snow out on the lake my eyes picked up the silhouette of a loon. As I stood watching the flurry of wings alerted me to a Mallard drake flying near shore. It must have seen me move, it flared upward in an audible flutter of feathered wings. No photos for either bird, too fast, too distant. Then a splash at the shore startled me. A fish, species unknown, dove for the deep…way too fast for the cameraman. In the falling snow my eyes were drawn to the droplets of water suspended from almost every horizontal twig and branch. They would make beautiful photos. For the next minutes water droplets held my attention. Feeling I had enough photos of water suspended from branches, the loon came to mind. It was a short walk back to the lake…and no loon. A small pond next to the lake had attracted a mallard drake. My approach made the bird nervous. The duck in the pond prompted me to scan the shore of this little wetland. Then I saw her…she had built her nest on a less than 6 feet wide strip of land between the lake and the wetland. She was almost in full view. Yet she sat on her nest in the snow. She knew I was there. Her outstretched neck and focused view told me to back up. I took her picture and backed away. She made number 6.

By this time, I had been outside in the snow for over 30 minutes. Since I had not put on a rain parka, my jacket was getting wet and would soon soak through to my skin. It was time to head back. It was my opinion that my “take the camera for a walk” had been a complete success…there were 6 unexpected surprises. I headed for home. I took the exact path I had taken on the trip to the lake. Almost home and crossing a footbridge over the channel between lakes, I glanced to my right. I saw a ball on a tree at eye level. I kept walking-for two steps. A ball? On a tree? It was gray. I looked back. The ball was a bird. No, I am not losing my mind-a bird. Since it was cold, the bird had its feathers fluffed. It had tucked its head under its wing. A closer look told me it was a Northern Flicker, a migratory woodpecker…a cold migratory fluffed up ball shaped woodpecker hanging on a tree on a cold afternoon. I never expected that! Never in my life had I seen such a sight. Carefully, quietly, I took the bird’s picture. It never moved. Now there were 7 unexpected surprises.

Northern Flicker..fluffed in cold weather.

Now for some advice…in a list:

1.       Go outside-often…expect surprises, look for them. Unexpected surprise can become the main reason you go outside.

2.       Stay outside long enough for your mind to switch from inside awareness to outside awareness. (30 minutes at least)

3.       Sitting in one place reveals many surprises.

4.       Walk and stop is another method to discover surprises. Walk a while, stop and watch and listen.

5.       Practice scanning the ground, then scan above ground while slowly moving your attention to the sky.

6.       Repeat step five as often as your motivation to do so lasts.

7.       Know that some days will have small surprises…other days will have woodpecker balls hanging on trees.

Consider these…Each surprise was placed where you could see it. God is the Creator of nature surprises. (That’s why they are so good!)

Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. Ephesians 3:20

*Parents…teach your children to look for the surprises God puts outside every day. You and they will find your lives more full-and happier.