The Bald Eagle - A Short Story I Wrote

[JosephKnecht]

I wrote this short story a while ago. The story is metaphorical in nature. I hope you will find yourself somewhere in the story. Enjoy! 

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Once upon a time, somewhere in Middle Earth, there existed one miraculous tree. The tree was so beautiful, so breathtaking, that it took the breath away of every spirit that laid eyes on this tree of miracles. The tree knew not what to do with the breath of the spirit, so it gave the breath back to the spirit. When the breath returned to the spirit, it gave it life. The tree made the spirit alive. Thus, they called this tree that gave life, the Tree of Life.

The Tree of Life was grand and miraculous. There are no words that could ever describe the grandeur that existed on the Tree of Life. One could only say that the Tree of Life was truly miraculous. Life was its greatest miracle. The Tree of Life was so phenomenal that it created the life of many phenomena. In the beginning, the tree was not alive, but since it gave the gift of life to all forms, the Tree of Life itself became alive.

The Tree of Life created life forms in many shapes and sizes. It housed many plants and animals. Everything alive lived on the Tree of Life. Around the tree trunk, many serpents dwelled. The serpents hid where all the darkness of life beheld. The crown of the tree exposed all other animals. In the crown of the tree was where all other animals lived. There were elephants that weighed a ton and birds that flew in a flock of one. All life was created to live on the Tree of Life.

The location of the tree was uncertain. Some say that the Tree of Life was located between everything and nothing. Other, more certain voices said that the tree existed somewhere between Heaven and Hell. Nobody knew everything, so nobody knew the exact location of the tree. Some said that the Tree of Life extended its roots all the way down to Hell. Its crown, on the other hand, extended high up all the way to the heavens. Between Heaven and Hell, life was to be lived on the Tree of Life.

The outer parts of the tree were bathing in the sunrays of the mighty sun. The inner parts of the tree were enveloped in shadows. The deeper one went down the tree, the more darkness he saw. The lower someone went, the darker the tree shadow became. The greater the tree, the bigger the shadow. The Tree of Life was so great that its shadow extended indefinitely into nothingness. All life forms that lived in the shadows, lived in darkness of their ignorance. In eternal darkness, they suffered the lack of light.

On the outskirts of the Tree of Life, however, lived many life forms that could glimpse the light of the mighty sun. Only on the edge of the Tree of Life, the light shined brightly. Only on the verge of the Tree of Life, one could see the new frontiers. Only on the edge of life, one could see what lies beyond the Tree of Life. The opportunity to glimpse beyond the Tree of Life was given to the few lucky animals that were born to escape their darkness.

On the outer bounds of the tree, there lived many animal forms. Among them, the birds soared the highest. The birds lived high up the tree and they only wished to be free. There were many species of birds, but the highest among them were the eagles. The eagles saw the light, they saw the goodness, but they also saw many upheavals.

The highest among the birds were the eagles. The highest eagle among all the eagles was the bald eagle. One day, one bald eagle became discontented with all the shadows and darkness that existed on the Tree of Life. The bald eagle started to despise all the contents of the mighty Tree of Life. With immense baldness, the bald eagle one day decided to leap out of the tree and fly into new lands. The bald eagle decided to leave the Tree of Life. He wished to seek a new light.

With a giant leap, the bald eagle left the Tree of Life and flew into the unknown. For seven days he ventured into the wide skies and saw blue oceans with its own eyes. For seven long days, the bald eagle journeyed into different coasts and he saw the shadows of many ghosts. For seven long days, the bald eagle was missing from the Tree of Life, but on the seventh day, he returned back to the tree. There was only one thing in the world that the bald eagle wanted more than to be free.

The bald eagle more than his own freedom wished to give freedom to all the other life forms on the Tree of Life. The bald eagle wished to discover the nature of the self. The more he discovered the self, the more selfless he became. Eventually, he became so selfless that he forgot that he was a bald eagle. Beyond the nature of the self, the bald eagle discovered the beauty and freedom that existed beyond Life. Through his death, he learned how to discover the beauty of life. Once discovered, the bald eagle wished to share the truth, the beauty with all the other eagles.

Many times the bald eagle left the Tree of Life, but he always returned. Upon his return, he shared his words; he shared his wisdom with all the other eagles. The bald eagle tried to describe his visions, but all he did was to create new divisions. The bald eagle told the other eagles about the sights that exist beyond the Tree of Life. He told them about the new conditions that exist beyond their traditions.

But the words that the bald eagle spoke fell on deaf ears. The other eagles didn’t believe the Bald One because he always disappeared. The eagles believed only in that which appeared. Only their own appearances became real to them. Everything else remained unreal. Their whole lives, the eagles knew nothing other than the Tree of Life. The Tree was their Life. They held onto the Tree for dear life.

Nobody believed the bald eagle. But the bald eagle was bold. He did not get discouraged. In other’s disbelief, he found his own courage. Thus, the bald eagle roved between the Tree of Life and the unknown. What he found could not be shown. The eagle flew alone, but every seventh day he returned to the Tree of Life, which now became his throne. The bald eagle foretold his tales, again and again. He shared his truth with the other eagles, but his Truth was only his own. All other eagles lived in their own zone.

For many years the bald eagle came and went from the Tree of Life. He told many unbelievable stories about life and light. He told stories that other eagles couldn’t believe. But eventually, his persistence paid off. After many years, his words intrigued few other eagles that became curious about the nature of life beyond the Tree of Life. Few golden eagles left their nests, and in the land of the unknown became new guests. The golden eagles joined the Bald One, for they too wished to know what hides behind the drape. Eventually, more and more eagles started to leave the Tree of Life and beyond life they sought their escape.

The golden eagles came and went. They followed the steps of the Bold One. Some golden eagles got lost into some golden treasures, but the bald eagle always returned. No matter how far he went, the Bold One always returned to tell the other eagles about the beauty that exists beyond the Tree of Life. Every seventh day, on a Sunday, when the God of creation rested, the bald eagle came back to give rest to the restless souls that lived on the Tree of Life. He told many stories with great conviction, and his stories became ever more convincing. His voice became louder and deeper. One day his voice became so loud and deep that all the eagles on the tree could hear the stories of the bald eagle.

Many started to believe in his stories, but many still had doubts. The eagles that believed through their belief found the courage to take a leap out of the Tree of Life and into the unknown. To prove that they believed, they had to go beyond just a mare belief and leave the Tree of Life. The ideas that were only believed became dogma, but the ideas that were actualized became a new way of life. Only the ideas that were embodied had the potential to inspire their spirit to leave the Tree of Life. Through that potential, many eagles acquired the hidden spirit of the bald eagle and became inspired to leave the crown of life for the crowns that lie beyond life.

Many types of eagles started leaving the Tree of Life. From the tree, they could only glimpse the rays of light that fell on the tree, but from beyond the tree they could see the light more clearly. From beyond the Tree of Life, they could see the pure light in all its glory. The nature of the light was quite peculiar. Only those who had seen the light, knew the light. Those who heard about the light had an idea about it, but an idea is not the same as knowing. Knowing could only be known through first-hand experience and not second-hand. Light could be only experienced and could not be shared with others. That was the peculiar nature of the Light.

Another peculiar thing started to happen more and more. When the eagles left the Tree of Life and came back to the Tree, they always returned with more light than when they left. The eagles returned lighter than they used to be. Since they were lighter, they became more uplifting and started to uplift the spirits of all the other animals.

The other animals that lived in the Tree of Life could not understand the language of the eagles, since all animals spoke their own language. The animals didn’t speak the eagle language, but they could feel that lightness of being that started to descend on the Tree of Life. The language of the eagles had limitations, and the biggest limitation was the fact that only eagles could only understand other eagles. When other animals heard the eagles speak, they only heard noise. Every type of animal spoke their own language. Despite the fact that all animals called the Tree of Life their home, each animal lived among their own tribe and spoke only the language of their tribe.

Some eagles, taken with the beauty of the light which they witnessed outside the Tree of life, started to share the beauty beyond life with the other animals. However, all the other animals heard was an eagle screech. They only heard the harsh, piercing cry of the eagle voice and could not understand what the eagles preach. Some eagles took some snakes with their claws and flew beyond the Tree of Life, but the snakes couldn’t fly. The snakes had many flaws. The snakes had to follow the Earthly laws.

The story of the light started to become prevalent among the eagles. Many eagles started to bathe in the Light of the sun. The light became so intense that the eagles started to sense the light of all the stars in the nightly skies. In the starlight they started to see their own reflection. In the light, they began to see the light that exists within their spirits. One day, like any other, the eagles made a pact among each other. One faithful day they made an agreement with all the birds of their own kind.

The agreement was that the next day, on sunrise, when the light appears on the horizon, all the eagles will jump in unison and venture together to seek the light. In a flock of one, all eagles decided to leap from the Tree of Life and pursue the rays of the mighty sun. What they would find in the light they knew not, but they knew that must give it a shot.

There was much uncertainty about what would happen with the Tree of Life if all eagles left at the same time. Thus far, each eagle strayed separately into the unknown. But now for the first time the eagles agreed to go together. The eagles encouraged each other to seek the light. By now they sensed what lies beyond the Tree of Life, but they knew not what would happen if all the eagles left simultaneously. The only way to find the answer was to do it. Only when they left the tree, they could see what would happen to the Tree of Life.

Early the next morning, as the sun was rising from the East, the eagles sought to find their release. From the crown of the tree, they saw the new light of day and for the first time decided to leap jointly into the light. In an instant, they decided to forget the Tree of Life and seek the light. They did as they had promised. The eagles flew high into the deep blue open air. They spread their wings and started to fly towards the source of the light. The sun seemed infinitely far away, but the eagles had hopes that with great dedication, infinity is within their reach.

The eagles flew for hours. The bald eagle led the pack. He soured through the resistance of the air and made the travel easier for the eagles that came behind. As the eagles traveled through the air, the sun traveled through the sky. In the wide open space where everything appeared transfixed, everything was moving slowly to its right destination. The sun was going west where it sets, and the eagles were going wherever the light of the sun took them. Long and tiring was the journey to the light. It took irrevocable commitment to seek the light. The eagles sought the light even at the cost of their lives.

For days the eagles flew toward their destination that seemed forever unreachable. On the way there, they lost many lives. Many eagles got tired. Many fell from the skies into their demise. They faced many hardships and storms. In their determination to seek the light, they all conformed. With each passing day, their wings got heavier. The eagles passed through many barriers. Through the sheer determination of their will, they pushed against the winds. Some eagles cursed the day when they decided to leave the Tree of Life. Their life used to be a miracle, but now, away from the tree that gave them life, it was a miracle they are still alive.

The eagles were getting closer to the light. They could see its shine, they could feel its warmth, but they could not get it swarmed. The closer they got, the further apart it seemed to move away from them. While flying through the open air, a heavy storm befell on the flock of eagles. This storm was unlike any other. The storm filled the air with darkness and completely eclipsed all the light. The eagles couldn’t see the other eagles. The darkness swallowed their hopes of reaching their destination. Their souls yearned for the light, but all they got was a dark night. A dark night of the souls befell on their shattered spirits. In complete darkness, all the eagles got lost.

The next day, one eagle opened his eyes. What he saw was beyond belief. What he felt was only immense grief. The lonely eagle had lost all his brothers and sisters. The lost eagle lost track of all the other eagles. He could finally see the light in front of his own face. He saw the end of the endless race. In the end, he was the winner. He was the one who found the gateless gate, but there was nobody else there to witness his fate.

The poor eagle was all alone. There was nobody there who could throw him a bone. The eagle could eat only that which he had grown. He was thrown into the unknown where he was alone. The eagle missed all the other eagles. He wondered what had happened to them. He reminisced on their fate, but he found nobody with which he could relate.

There was nothing left of his previous life. Everything that the eagle had left was the purity of light that blinded his spirit. The lonely eagle wished to cry. The poor eagle wished to die. With his last breath, he gathered his last strength and plunged into the radiance of the sun. Before he merged into the light, he experienced the ultimate gaslighting. The lonely eagle finally realized the true nature of his own reality.

He finally realized that no eagles ever flew in a flock. Eagles for all of eternity had always flown alone. The eagle realized that all his life; he had imagined the Tree of Life. He had imagined the company of other eagles. He imagined all miracles. The lonely eagle imagined that it was him that imagined life, and it was him that imagined his own imagination. The eagle recognized that it was him who created all the distinctions under the light of the sun.

He finally remembered why he was always searching for the light. He was always searching for that which he is.

There was never a Tree of Life. There was never a bald eagle.

All that ever was; all there ever will be; is the Light.

 

[Nahm]

@JosephKnecht ??

[Loving Radiance]

@JosephKnecht What a lovely read. Thank you.

[Guest SirVladimir]

You have a wonderful tendency to flip a story at the end and bring the reader to an epiphany. Thank you for sharing.

I'll have to share one of mine, too! 

Edited September 2, 2020 by SirVladimir

[JosephKnecht]

I am glad you enjoyed it... 

[StudentOfLeove]

This is music to the soul...???