Staff writer
A co-worker recently told me about these spiral wires the electric company was installing to keep birds off the lines. Now I have no idea why birds would not be welcome on high wire lines anymore, but it got me to thinking about the things that seem to be spiraling either down or up in my life.
I have always taken the philosophy that life is a balancing act and one who finds the right balance is happy. After reading through docket and police news in the paper this week, I now wonder if life is more like a spiral for many in Marion County, with circumstances running unchecked until it is too late to grab control and straighten things out.
Life can be somewhat like the spiraling slinky toy, which can be entertaining but somewhat frivolous in meaning as it travels down a staircase.
Sometimes life even takes a more destructive spiral, when a bad choice or just an unfortunate circumstance leads to consequences than end up flushing lives down the toilet of despair.
Of course, there are good spirals in life too. My favorite is the spiral I saw an eagle take as it climbed to heights almost out of view above me. It seemed to rise magically, circling round and round, without so much a flap of those mighty wings, to a place far above the problems of earthly existence.
January can often be a month of difficulties and a time when spirals run in a downward motion. With a conscious effort, I think everyone has the choice to look up, grab onto an eagle spiral, and soar into new spaces for a better view of life on earth.
One of my favorite Bible verses is from Isaiah, and it fills me with hope and joy, even in January. Found in the New International Version, Isaiah 40:11 says, “But those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”
I have seen several Bald Eagles while driving between Hillsboro and Marion recently. There is something completely thrilling about seeing those great birds soaring above the earth on unseen currents. These birds certainly do not need to sit on wires and are unaffected by the sideways or downward spirals those of us on earth sometimes fall prey too.
My hope for others and myself this year is to find inspiration and the strength to reach for a higher power and spiral up, just like the eagles.