The peace that brings understanding

When I'm birding, there are moments where time is suspended and I suddenly become part of the natural world, rather than just observing it with binoculars. It usually happens when I'm birding alone, which I love, though there are many people I dearly love birding with, too--the joy of shared birding is just as lovely in a different way. It takes a bit of time to acclimate to the forest world--to become silent enough to be permitted to enter. And then, suddenly, birds are all around me, some within an arm's length--looking at me with curiosity more than fear, heads cocked and wings thrumming as they fly from perch to perch. I see so much more in these peaceful timeless moments, and I begin to understand how their singing, bursting world fits together.