YES, let’s be like an eagle, soaring
quietly high up in
the sky, having a good, extensive view of the things on the ground,
and not like cackling barnyard hen whose flight is low and is mainly
done to escape something or to boast to the whole world that it has
just laid an egg. The hen, of course, has a very limited view of
things.
The other thing about the eagle is that in spite of the
tremendous altitude that it can climb, it has a sharp vision that can
see even a running rodent on the ground and has the agility to swoop
down quickly to catch its prey. That’s really quite a combination.
This can never be said of the hen.
I know that it is unfair to compare a hen with an eagle.
Each one has its own nature and purpose for being. But for our sake,
we can compare ourselves to them because as human beings, we have the
choice to assume the qualities of an eagle or those of a hen.
To be like an eagle can mean to think big instead of being
contented with small, petty things. It can mean to take on more and
more responsibilities, instead of being contented with what we are
having at the moment.
We can always do more. With our spiritual nature, the
possibilities for growth and improvement are infinite. This simply
corresponds to the fact that the demands of our own sanctification and
the needs of other people about whom we should always be concerned are
also infinite.
To be like an eagle can mean expanding our generosity
instead of simply being self-satisfied with our current state of
charity. It can mean pushing ourselves up to the next level in every
aspect of our life. We should never be contented with the status quo,
no matter how good it already is. Let’s remember the saying that “the
good is the enemy of the best.”
It can mean to be always zealous in any endeavor we do,
instead of simply being complacent and lukewarm. It can mean to be a
maximalist rather than a minimalist, contented with a passing mark.
That’s what happens when one is in love. He is not
contented with doing things just to get by. He does things to the best
of his abilities, always seeking new frontiers of creativity,
effectiveness and efficiency. That’s simply because love is giving not
only things but his own self without measure. That’s love most
intrinsic law. It’s given without measure.
We need to learn to adopt this kind of lifestyle. It’s not
going to be easy, of course. Many things have to be resolved and
mastered. We have to contend with our tendencies to be self-centered,
to be attached to things, to be materialistic, complacent, cold or
lukewarm, etc. But with God’s grace, our full trust in God’s ways
matched with our efforts, we can enter and flow in this amazing
dynamics of true love.
Truth is for this love to develop and grow, we do not need
some special moments and opportunities to trigger it. Any occasion,
any event, no matter how small and, humanly speaking, insignificant
can be a golden privilege to live heroism that is inseparable from
loving.
Another reason why we have to be like an eagle in our
spiritual and moral life rather than just be like a chicken is that
when we have an outlook and lifestyle that can be characterized as
big-hearted, eager to do big things without neglecting the fine
details, and magnanimous, we can more easily handle the many
weaknesses and temptations that will always hound us.
A person stuck in petty things is an easy target of his
own weaknesses and the temptations around. He tends to be lazy and
narrow-minded, unable to develop the resistance to bear things and the
strength to move forward.
A phenomenon that is getting common nowadays is that of
many smart people with impressive accomplishments but who are unable
to escape the bad allurements of the world and the subtle tricks of
the devil.
And that’s simply because they have stopped growing and
moving forward. They get self-satisfied with what they have already
accomplished, showing in effect that all that effort was not really
for God and for others, but simply for themselves, a clear
contradiction to what loving is supposed to be.
We need to alert everyone about this danger. That’s why
it’s good to keep in mind this comparison between the eagle and the
hen.
the sky, having a good, extensive view of the things on the ground,
and not like cackling barnyard hen whose flight is low and is mainly
done to escape something or to boast to the whole world that it has
just laid an egg. The hen, of course, has a very limited view of
things.
The other thing about the eagle is that in spite of the
tremendous altitude that it can climb, it has a sharp vision that can
see even a running rodent on the ground and has the agility to swoop
down quickly to catch its prey. That’s really quite a combination.
This can never be said of the hen.
I know that it is unfair to compare a hen with an eagle.
Each one has its own nature and purpose for being. But for our sake,
we can compare ourselves to them because as human beings, we have the
choice to assume the qualities of an eagle or those of a hen.
To be like an eagle can mean to think big instead of being
contented with small, petty things. It can mean to take on more and
more responsibilities, instead of being contented with what we are
having at the moment.
We can always do more. With our spiritual nature, the
possibilities for growth and improvement are infinite. This simply
corresponds to the fact that the demands of our own sanctification and
the needs of other people about whom we should always be concerned are
also infinite.
To be like an eagle can mean expanding our generosity
instead of simply being self-satisfied with our current state of
charity. It can mean pushing ourselves up to the next level in every
aspect of our life. We should never be contented with the status quo,
no matter how good it already is. Let’s remember the saying that “the
good is the enemy of the best.”
It can mean to be always zealous in any endeavor we do,
instead of simply being complacent and lukewarm. It can mean to be a
maximalist rather than a minimalist, contented with a passing mark.
That’s what happens when one is in love. He is not
contented with doing things just to get by. He does things to the best
of his abilities, always seeking new frontiers of creativity,
effectiveness and efficiency. That’s simply because love is giving not
only things but his own self without measure. That’s love most
intrinsic law. It’s given without measure.
We need to learn to adopt this kind of lifestyle. It’s not
going to be easy, of course. Many things have to be resolved and
mastered. We have to contend with our tendencies to be self-centered,
to be attached to things, to be materialistic, complacent, cold or
lukewarm, etc. But with God’s grace, our full trust in God’s ways
matched with our efforts, we can enter and flow in this amazing
dynamics of true love.
Truth is for this love to develop and grow, we do not need
some special moments and opportunities to trigger it. Any occasion,
any event, no matter how small and, humanly speaking, insignificant
can be a golden privilege to live heroism that is inseparable from
loving.
Another reason why we have to be like an eagle in our
spiritual and moral life rather than just be like a chicken is that
when we have an outlook and lifestyle that can be characterized as
big-hearted, eager to do big things without neglecting the fine
details, and magnanimous, we can more easily handle the many
weaknesses and temptations that will always hound us.
A person stuck in petty things is an easy target of his
own weaknesses and the temptations around. He tends to be lazy and
narrow-minded, unable to develop the resistance to bear things and the
strength to move forward.
A phenomenon that is getting common nowadays is that of
many smart people with impressive accomplishments but who are unable
to escape the bad allurements of the world and the subtle tricks of
the devil.
And that’s simply because they have stopped growing and
moving forward. They get self-satisfied with what they have already
accomplished, showing in effect that all that effort was not really
for God and for others, but simply for themselves, a clear
contradiction to what loving is supposed to be.
We need to alert everyone about this danger. That’s why
it’s good to keep in mind this comparison between the eagle and the
hen.
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