But Still

Have you ever looked to the sky to see art

Amazed how a murmuration of starlings knows

How to shift and adjust on a dime

Without chaos but moving beauty

Have you watched baby sea turtles emerge from a sandy den

All at once

And understanding the urgency of reaching the ocean

Scramble for their lives

Asking how their newborn senses lead them to the sea

Learning the downward slope of the beach and

The reflections of the moon and stars on water guide their way

But still

And the V of the geese formations during migration

To conserve energy and decrease air resistance

The front birds falling back when they are weary from wind

And the monarch butterflies weighing half a gram each

Making a 3000 mile journey to spend the winter

In southwestern Mexico

And did I mention they weigh half a gram each

What guides them and their paper thin wings?

And the salmon run

Where adults who have lived in the saltwater ocean

Return with uncanny precision

To the freshwater spawning ground of their very own birth

There are theories as to how they know

But still

And the humpback whale songs

Able to travel 10,000 miles without losing energy

Who else is listening and how can I answer?

And how the haunting plaintive cry of the lone wolf

Gives you goosebumps because it touches a part of you

That you yourself don't even understand

But still

You know the song says more than you could ever say by talking

So you listen and wonder

As the wolf sings its sonorous minor melody

Into the very heart of your life

And this sacred mystery