Ode to the Ostrich
On the Pleasure of Fresh Eyes…. and Ears and Mouth and Nose
With their elaborate—some might say gaudy — plumage, the ostrich looks like a cocktail party on two sticks. But this is nothing compared to their eyes. As big as a billiard ball, the glossy brown eyes of an ostrich can spot predators up to two miles away. Of course, giant eyeballs require enormous lashes. Ostrich lashes, which are actually feathers, would make a Vegas showgirl envious. Watching an ostrich run is hilarious and exhilarating. Faster than a horse, the knobby-kneed bird can cover the length of a station wagon with every stride. They fluff out their wings to keep their balance and when they need to slow down.
I had not seen an ostrich in real life until Joe and I moved to South Africa, where they are raised for their meat, feathers, skin and eyelashes, the latter of which are made into fine-art paint brushes. Whenever we saw an ostrich farm, we would get out of the car and stand alongside the fence until a handful, and then, eventually, the entire herd would approach us. Their bald heads, perched on top of long and elegant necks, would bob up and down making them look like a game of whack a mole. “Who wants some ice cream?” I would joke and a few heads would pop up above the fray. With brains smaller than their eyes, the ostrich is not known for its intelligence. At the slightest sound, they would take off running at top speed for a few feet and then turn back, seemingly having forgotten what had spooked them.
I felt like we were in Jurassic Park, witnessing dinosaurs for the first time. And, in a way, that was true. Ostriches have survived a whole host of extinction events and have walked the Earth for over 66 million years. As I watched the birds scatter and regroup, I wondered if it was possible to see other things with so much curiosity and delight. Joe and I swore that if we ever had kids, we would’t tell them about the ostrich just so when they were teenagers we could watch them light up in the presence these prehistoric creatures.
We don’t need to travel to a remote ostrich farm to experience the world with fresh eyes. We can do it right now, wherever we are, by employing a Beginner’s Mind. Beginner’s mind, or shoshin as the Zen Buddhists call it, is the practice of letting go of knowledge, story and expectations. This is hard to do in a culture that values expertise and disparages mistakes. But, if we can surrender to it, the rewards of a beginner's mind are great and quite pleasurable. When we embrace a beginner’s mind, we don’t focus on whether the task at hand will be challenging or a breeze. We release limiting beliefs about our physical and mental abilities. Beginner’s mind allows us to uncover new facets of ourselves. Approaching strangers or life-long friends with a beginner’s mind allows us to experience them in real time, without old narratives. It is a good way to overcome our prejudices. Beginner’s mind helps us stay in the here and now.
What if we could do more than overwrite our mental operating system and also practice Beginner’s Body? What if we inhabited our physical being as though it was the very first time? What if we didn’t anticipate pain or discomfort and only responded to the sensation in the moment? Beginner’s Body is an abstract concept so I came up with a few practices that might help us consider our bodies as brand new instruments through which to encounter the world— and one another.
Imagine you are a newborn. Try running your hand through your hair as though your scalp has never been touched before. Notice the pressure and temperature of the air on your skin. Open your ears and allow the sounds around you to enter your ears and body without knowing - or caring - what they are or where they come from.
Pretend you are an animal. Animals don’t worry about how something is supposed to feel or whether it is appropriate or not. For the most part, animals know nothing of shame. Try being lots of different animals. How does a bear feel when it rolls around on its back? What does it feel like to be an ostrich running at top speed, wind in your feathers.
Be an alien. Inhabit your own human body for a few minutes. What is this thing called skin? How does air taste?
Sensory deprivation can create novel experiences. There is a meditation I love that involves sitting down and covering your ears with your thumbs and your eyes with your forefingers. Breathing like this for a few minutes can heighten other senses, like the vibration of sound hitting your body.
Try imagining walking out of a dark cave and seeing color for the first time. Our eyes can discern a million colors and see a candle 14 miles away. But only if we are paying attention.
magine you have an extra sense and can take in the world through novel ways. What would it be? How would you describe it to someone else?
“If the doors of perception were cleansed,” wrote William Blake in The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, “everything would appear to man as it is, Infinite.” Here’s to finding out just how infinite we are.
FROM THE INSTITUTE OF PLEASURE STUDIES
Make your day a whole lot more pleasurable by watching this booty-shaking ostrich mating ritual (with an over-the-top soundtrack).
Beginner's Mindis a popular concept these days. Yo Yo Ma just released these recorded stories and music as a way to "to strip away preconceptions and reclaim a beginner's mind…one open to new questions, new connections, new explorations, and unexpected answers."
Zen habits extols the virtues of Beginner’s Mind. Some good tips here.
UPDATE: For those of you following the Steven Donziger’s fight to hold Chevron accountable for polluting the Amazon, August 6th marked 2 years that he has been in pre-trial home detention for a misdemeanor contempt charge. The case continues to garner international attention and outrage. He expects to be sentenced on October 1st Judge Preska and he is asking for help to finance his legal team. You can donate here. And learn more here.
Thanks for reading. I love hearing from you all.