Refueling
Sometimes, when I feel as if I’m running out of fuel, I’ll walk over to the campus and find a secluded bench away from the crowd. Once seated, I’ll break the slices of bread that I have brought along and toss the pieces in the surrounding area. The small gray doves will come to feed. I’m always amazed at their trusting nature. The mynah birds eventually arrive to investigate what it is that they are missing. Their funny yellow feet always amuse me.
Once all the bread has been scattered about, I will take a breath and then release it. I’ll close my eyes in silence, leaving all the world behind, absorbing only that which surrounds me; the sound of soft cooing of the birds, the scent of damp soil in the air, the occasional gust of wind at my back, the sound of the tree branches thrashing their leaves, and the warmth of the sun that kisses my face.
I can’t possibly describe the euphoric state that fills me, but there are times when I wish that I need not open my eyes again. However, when I do open my eyes, the world is anew; and so am I.