Expecting to Fly<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Spring is one of those great times of year when we start to see the little ones of life stretch their wings and fly. If you\u2019ve ever watched a robin build\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/theprinciplesofspiritualliving\/2014\/06\/expecting-to-fly\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Expecting to Fly\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Spring is one of those great times of year when we start to see the little ones of life stretch their wings and fly. 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{"id":757,"date":"2014-06-12T12:43:24","date_gmt":"2014-06-12T18:43:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/theprinciplesofspiritualliving\/?p=757"},"modified":"2014-06-12T12:43:24","modified_gmt":"2014-06-12T18:43:24","slug":"expecting-to-fly","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/theprinciplesofspiritualliving\/2014\/06\/expecting-to-fly\/","title":{"rendered":"Expecting to Fly"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

$\"\"$ <\/a>Spring is one of those great times of year when we start to see the little ones of life stretch their wings and fly.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019ve ever watched a robin build a nest, you know that the amount of energy expended by both the adult male and female is enormous. In the early days, it\u2019s the male that flits back and forth to bring food for everyone \u2013 including the mother. As the chicks start to grow, the two increasingly take turns to bring back enough to fill their hungry beaks.<\/p>\n

Eventually, the nest is bursting, and its time to fly. These are precarious times, and for some chicks the leap from the nest is simply too much to handle. But nature has a solution for that too. Both adults hover around the nesting area for a minimum of 10 days just to make sure the chick has enough strength to continue. From there, they\u2019re on their own.<\/p>\n

And so it is this time of year with many of our children who are graduating from high school or college or university. They are leaving the nest of their early years and taking the big leap of faith.<\/p>\n

Of course, we\u2019re all continually taking that big leap, and often \u2013 like that little chick not quite ready to fend for itself \u2013 we lean on others and expect support. But it\u2019s at these times that we may find the support isn\u2019t there \u2013 the adults have left us to our own devices.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s easy to argue that we\u2019ve been abandoned. And as long as we continue to believe that, our \u201cwings\u201d will not strengthen.<\/p>\n

Michael Beckwith says \u201cpain pushes until vision pulls.\u201d We cannot expect others to support us in our vision until we claim that vision as our own and begin to act on it. Our \u201cpain\u201d is ours alone.<\/p>\n

We can see this in so many places \u2013 in the path from addiction, in the path to economic independence, in the path of our careers. It\u2019s not until we claim the situation for ourselves, that we begin to facilitate the necessary change.<\/p>\n

In these delicate early stages of transformation, we cannot lean on others and expect support. Whenever we do so, we are asking them to fill us \u2013 rather than knowing that all that we need is already within. If we have the vision, we have the strength. The only thing left is courage.<\/p>\n

Once we have set our intention, then we can turn to others to support that vision \u2013 and they will do so in droves. But until that point, we are asking others to carry us, and they can\u2019t. It\u2019s not their job.<\/p>\n

Our job at these times is to recognize that no matter where we are on our journey, Spirit is always carrying us. The guidance that we seek from others is within.<\/p>\n

Like our little robin chicks, we can expect to fly.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"