I CAME across a video on YouTube that got me fascinated. It talks about the virtues of eagles that we can apply to our lives. Animals by the way have certain characteristics that relate to values or virtues as well as vices. Our Lord Jesus Christ used an animal analogy for example when He persuaded His followers to be wise with the ways of the world and at the same time not to be contaminated by its wayward practices or not to be worldly. “Therefore, be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.” (Matthew 10:16)
In that video
it teaches us seven virtues that eagles possess that we can imitate.
1.)
Eagles Fly Alone at High Altitude: The video says eagles don’t fly with ravens,
sparrows or other small birds. It means we ought to stay away from narrow
minded people or those that bring us down. Eagles only fly with eagles,
thus, we should only keep good company or people who are like minded with us
that cherish the same values and principles that we have, because as the saying
goes, “Bad company ruins good morals.”
2.)
Eagles Have a Vision: Eagles have the ability to focus on something even as far
as five kilometers away. No matter what the obstacles, the eagle does not
remove his focus from the prey until he grabs it. The lesson is to have a
vision and to have that focus in one’s life towards our goals regardless of the
obstacles or challenges along the way. We should not give up until we
reach that prized goal in our life. Remember that without focus we cannot
make any progress in life.
3.)
Eagles are Fearless: Eagles don’t shy away from opponents that are bigger than
them, or surrender their territories without giving a fight. Thus, no
matter what the size of our problem might be, first we should not run away from
it and second, we should have the persistence in overcoming it. Successful
people face problems head on. I always associate running away from
problems as one of the major causes of addiction. Addiction to substances
or to any other vice is a lack of courage in facing life’s challenges and
seeking refuge to a pleasurable activity. Life’s challenges have a
purpose which is growth in character.
4.)
Eagles Ride on the Storm: Part of their being fearless, eagles make use of the
strong winds of the storm to make them fly higher. Eagles are not afraid
of storms while other birds hide from leaves and branches of trees.
Eagles then are able to rise above the clouds and glide because of the
tailwinds that pushes them. Thus, resting its wings while gliding.
Eagle-minded people make use of challenges and use them for their profitability.
Even if their challenges bring them failure, successful people use those
lessons from failure to propel them to greater heights.
5.)
Eagles Never Eat Dead Things: Eagles don’t scavenge dead meat unlike
vultures. Eagles look for their prey, catch them and bring them home
alive. It’s a lesson on self-reliance and hard work and not relying on
others' effort in making a living. It’s also a lesson on not relying on
past successes (dead things) to solve today’s problem because each challenge is
unique in itself.
6.)
Eagles are Growth Oriented: When the right time comes, mother eagle removes
feathers and soft grass in the nest so that kid eagles don’t get comfortable
anymore and are forced to fly. It’s a lesson on leaving our comfort zones
because there is no growth there. The growth is in the “courage
zone.” Bo Sanchez would call it the “courage zone” because it requires
courage to get there but it’s worth the effort taking in new challenges or
conquering new frontiers because it fosters growth, and makes life more
exciting.
7.)
Eagles Renew Themselves: When an eagle grows old, its feathers become weak and
could not make him fly as fast and as high as it should. This could make
the eagle weak and die. So, he retires to a place far away in the
mountains. And while there he plucks out his feathers, and breaks his
beak and his claws against the rocks until he is completely bare. It is a
bloody and painful process. He stays in his hiding place until he has
grown new feathers, new beaks and claws. Then it comes out, and starts
flying again higher than ever before. The lesson is to shed off those bad
habits that hinder our progress or add no value to our lives. It might
take time getting rid of those comfortable habits and could be painful in the
process, but the important thing is to let go of them because they are an
obstacle to our growth in career, relationships, spiritual life, or health.
(ECC)
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