OUTDOOR TRUTHS: It's Better To Be An Eagle Than A Turkey
By Gary Miller
I was reminded last week, how close we are to turkey season. (As if I didn’t already know.) There in the field, were a flock of birds with one lone gobbler blown up as big as it could get. It was just standing there, nose in the air, as if to say, “Look at me everybody.” Even though I love turkey hunting, there’s something about that big tom that always reminds me of the little people in life. You know… the “little” people. The ones who are puffed up, who strut around, and who try to make themselves look like something they’re not. They are actually little but they make themselves up to be big. That’s exactly what that old tom was doing in that field. And it just might be what gets him his head blown off in a few weeks! Now don’t get me wrong, I know that unless I treat these “proud” people well, I am no better than them but it still bothers me when I see this hypocrisy.
I have heard in times past about some who thought America’s symbol should have been the turkey. After all it was plentiful during the days of our beginning, it is known for its adaptability, and it’s been a part of our Thanksgiving heritage for years. But no, I still prefer the good old eagle. It’s the bird that chooses to fly above all of the strutting and posturing. It’s the bird that doesn’t try to be something that it’s not and it’s the bird whose nose stays in the middle of its face. Am I saying that America is all of these things? Absolutely not. But I am saying that I had rather strive to be like that eagle than the turkey.
Here’s what the apostle Paul said about the antics of the turkey. “Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up.” And here is what the prophet Isaiah said about the eagle. “But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings like eagles. They shall run and not be weary. They shall walk and not faint.” Yep, I believe we got it right. The eagle belongs as an example for our character. The turkey belongs next to the dressing and cranberry sauce.
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Outdoor Truths, Hunting and Fishing for Answers, Volume III has just arrived. It contains over 60 of the articles that have appeared in this publication over time. Pick yours up at www.outdoortruths.org and thanks for reading!
Gary Miller can be reached via e-mail at gary@outdoortruths.org.
