Lunch With The Seagulls
By: Ann Perry
Recently while on vacation in Ontario I had the opportunity to have lunch with a flock of Seagulls. I’m sure by now you are asking the obvious. Why did you travel all the way to Ontario to see Seagulls and why would you want to have lunch with them?
July 2010. The sun is a wonderful treat but the temperature has risen to 50 degrees on my Mother’s deck. Most normal people would seek refuge in the house with the comfort of air conditioning. Normal does not describe my Mom or her lifestyle. You see Mom is from Jamaica where she is accustomed to the hot weather. She doesn’t use air conditioning there so why on earth would she use it in Ontario?! Meanwhile I’m feeling akin to the wicked witch of the west as she’s crying out “I’m melting!” That was me a pile of sweaty clothes stuck to the deck and unable to move.
I know! Let’s go for a drive to get into some cooler conditions!! Now there’s an idea!
Mom suggests that we go into town for lunch….just the girls….Mother and Daughter day out. I am all over that idea! So I pull myself away from the outdoor sauna and enjoy the prospects of an air conditioned ride to town. Thank God help is on the way!
The only monument to my late father’s death is a 2001 fully loaded Mazda Protégé which is entombed in Mom’s garage. This was my Dad’s baby. He worshipped this car. I carefully unveil the tribute car from the garage and proceed to let it run in the driveway while Mom gets ready. You guessed it! Air conditioning on full tilt!
Mom is busy telling me about this great place to eat just by the Canadian Tire in town. Excellent! Then she starts with “Why do you have the air conditioning on? Don’t you know it eats up twice the gas when you drive with the air on?!” Oh my. “Mom…I’m buying the gas and at the same time I’m probably saving my life and a few brain cells from frying a certain death.” Hmm. Quiet ride to the restaurant.
So I pull into the parking lot by the Canadian Tire and Mom says “pull in over there.”
“Over where?” “There!” “Ummm….where?” “Over there….by the trailer in the parking lot!” Biting my tongue I park the monument beside the hot dog trailer in the Canadian Tire parking lot. She is pleased to tell me that not only do they have thee best hot dogs in town but we get to share them with the Seagulls as well! Wow. Who knew?
Now picture this if you will. Its 50 degrees on her deck. Just imagine how hot it was sitting on the curb of the 3 acre asphalt parking lot! Hot dogs all dressed we proceed to find a curb to sit on so we can…you guessed it again…feed our lunch to the Seagulls.
There is no greater animal lover in the world than my mother. I am a close second but truly she takes the cake in this department. She honors every living thing in her world. Spiders, flies, hornets…doesn’t matter…live and let live. She is the most amazing animal communicator I’ve ever known.
So this wasn’t exactly my idea of a Mother Daughter luncheon but it soon turned out to be quite entertaining. It didn’t take long before every Jonathon Living Seagull came for a shot at getting some of our gourmet hotdogs. I was amazed at the pecking order that existed amongst these critters. Only the strong will survive! (And for the record…Seagulls don’t like pickles) There was such a level of determination that they exhibited. No crumb was too small. The native people describe the Seagulls as “opportunistic.” Now that’s an understatement!
A week or so later I found myself at an intersection in the Burnside Industrial Park. It was 5:00pm and traffic was at an all time high. None the less someone had found time to toss a chicken mc’nugget out into the intersection. I had the opportunity to watch as this one Seagull dive bombed the intersection with every bit of determination he could muster. Seconds existed between cars and he took every opportunity to try and achieve his prize of the squashed morsel. Nothing would stop his efforts. He had a goal and he was going after it. He had no time to consider how dangerous this might be. What if he failed? What if he got injured? He likely felt the fear and did it anyway. He saw an opportunity and he wasn’t going to miss it. I took time to consider what a fabulous example these beautiful birds set for us every day.
Anytime an animal causes me to watch them for no apparent reason it usually brings me cause to look up its spiritual meaning. I have come to learn that Seagulls are spiritual messengers that demonstrate a higher communication with our guides. Seagulls show us how to see things from different perspectives and offer clarity to problems we may be dealing with. They ask us to question if we are going with the flow in our lives or are we resisting it.
Sharing my lunch with the Seagulls was just the beginning of my journey into a greater understanding. Sometimes it takes lunch at curbside with a Mom to show you the subtle lessons that the animals can teach us. I was reminded of a time when I watched a Seagull drop a mussel from about 200’ to the rocky shore. He must have done this 15 times until it finally opened up for him to eat. He never gave up. He just kept on pursuing his goal until he achieved it.
What can you learn from the Seagulls? What part of your life needs a bit of clarification? How patient are you willing to be before you achieve your goals? I invite you to share your lunch with a Seagull. You’ll be glad you did.
