I just returned from my annual private spiritual retreat on Lake George in the Adirondacks. Most of what I receive during these retreats is too personal to share, but I am often given images from nature that speak to spiritual realities. This week, two such images were represented by impressive birds.
The first was a seagull. He was perched on a rock a few yards out from Slim Point, the southern boundary of Silver Bay. Nothing unusual about a seagull on a rock. But clouds were gathering quickly. The wind was gusty and chilly. The water was choppy and little waves were breaking on the very rock where the gull was standing just inches above the surface of the lake. And yet, through all of this stormy flux, he remained statuesque. Occasionally, he cocked his head in one direction or another, but seemed completely unfazed by the churning conditions around him. He was a symbol of strength– what Henri Nouwen once called a “non-anxious presence” that brings calm in the midst of frantic busyness, angst, and dis-ease. This, I believe, is one of the principal ways that spiritual leaders lead.
