“Pelicans are lazy,” my friend observed as we sat by the shore.
“Lazy?!” I answered. “How so? They fly their hearts out!”
“But they never flap their wings,” she pointed out.
While it’s not accurate to say pelicans NEVER flap their wings, they certainly are able to glide long distances thanks to their big wingspans, aerodynamic bodies, and deep pelican knowhow of wind and water; weather and micro-climate (“Oh, those tall condo buildings along the beach! At least humans did one thing right,” I can picture pelicans feeling as they take advantage of the air currents produced by the human-built environment.)
Let’s put it this way: Pelicans don’t flap their wings unless they really have to. And neither should we. Work smart, not hard! Husband your energies wisely; deploy them to maximum best effect.
OK, obviously we don’t have magnificent pelican wings. But we have our own human versions of wings — talents, skills, built-in physical and mental features — and our many human versions of unproductive wing-flapping. Work smart, not hard. Husband your energies like the diamonds and gold that they are.
What great things we can accomplish for ourselves and for the planet; how much better can we create, by being very deliberate with our energies and attention.
Further Reading:
Staying Grounded in a Big City or Busy World https://www.dailyom.com/cgi-bin/display/articledisplay.cgi?aid=66431 (Be wise with your energies and attentions – yet another jewel of an essay by Madisyn Taylor of the Daily OM. https://www.dailyom.com )
https://www.dailyom.com/cgi-bin/display/articledisplay.cgi?aid=66431
(Sorry for just pasting links; the Link function of the new version of WordPress is a bit tricky and I am taking awhile to master it)