Turkeys and Thankfulness
Connecting the two
What turkeys mean
Tomorrow is a holiday that is actually named Thanksgiving here in the U.S. Regardless of its origins or whether you have an equivalent holiday in your country, what a wonderful idea! Before I get to turkeys, thank you for being here and reading this. In some fashion it means I’m getting to connect with you, which is one of my favorite things.
Perhaps the most common tradition for Thanksgiving here is to enjoy turkeys. They were here when Europeans arrived, and as our nation was being formed the great Ben Franklin thought the turkey should be named our country’s national bird, rather than the bald eagle.
But turkeys are not, I think we can agree…. and how do I say this nicely… as “visually impressive” as bald eagles.
Many of us think mostly about how to prepare them for the dinner table. But wild turkeys continue to thrive. Ben would be pleased. You’ll find them in 49 of the 50 states. (I’ll let you guess which state still has none).1
Have you seen turkeys out and about? And how many? I have my own story about seeing turkeys. A few years ago, at this time of year, I encountered A LOT of them. Roughly 100. It was hard to count because they wouldn’t stay still. Many were racing between groups in a small meadow tucked into a hillside at Santa Teresa County Park in San Jose, CA.
I’m always thankful when I get to experience the natural world, and the density and activity level was something I’d never seen before. Watching and photographing their behaviors was just fascinating. There were so many interactions that it was a bit overwhelming; I had to choose which ones to actually see in a given moment. But since they were so involved with each other, I was able very slowly move down into the little valley with them, and get more intimate views than I expected.
Beyond the pleasure of seeing so much activity, right there in my figurative back yard, the experience became really amusing to me as I watched. It was mating season. And I couldn’t help but anthropomorphize just a little bit. It felt like prom, or something.
And the boys (toms) went out. At various points a tom would ask a hen for a date. She seems to be listening, considering:
But he might have said something she didn’t want to hear!
Some of the toms, perhaps hoping a hen would come to them, tried a different approach. Hoping to impress.
Nope. Not impressed. No dice, boys!
On this day, only one thing worked. Of the toms in the background below, I’m not sure if either one of them ever connected with that hen, like the couple in the foreground did. But they might have. Many turkeys found each other that afternoon.
Which goes to show, nothing compares with direct connections.
About those connections
Connections are part of the Big Three Important Things In Life for me. Connecting, Creating, and Contributing.
Connections change me in the best of ways. If I go through a period where I’m in a funk, or I’m not quite myself, connecting is great medicine. I’m so thankful for having friends from so many phases of my life. And for my small but wonderful family. And for love.
Creating is also incredibly nourishing. I’m thankful I have the freedom to create in the first place. I’m well past Maslov’s lower levels of needs. I have food and shelter and I’m physically safe. I’m just one of 8 Billion people on this planet, and relative to many others I feel supremely, almost unbelievably fortunate. Part of that good fortune is being able to experience the joy of creating things, and of experiencing others’ creations.
And then there’s contributing. Sometimes guilt strikes as if it were an independent being, and I feel that I’m not contributing enough. I could always do more. But I’m always in a position to contribute to others, and whether it’s picking up trash on the trail or being kind and friendly with others. I can contribute somehow, every day. I always have chances to make a small difference, in addition to making “larger” contributions from time to time. It may seem funny to be thankful for this. But feels good to help others, it feels good to contribute.
There are a ton of other things I could list that I’m thankful for. Nature, sports, a nice glass of wine; there are dozens of simple pleasures that I appreciate. But instead, I’ll thank you again for being with me. And if you want to do something really nice for me, then go connect with others. Cherish the things that you can be thankful for in your own life, and pass the appreciation on to others. That’s all. Just pass it on.
Until next time,
Limited Edition Prints for Sale
This time I’m making an Extremely Limited Edition of prints for the series called Seas and Skies. I’ll make just five 16x24” archival, Numbered Prints (and two Artists Prints), each with associated certificate of authentication. The price is a bit higher, but with only five available and based on history I expect them to sell out.
If you’d like one or more for that special person, you still have time for the holidays.
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It had to be one of the remote states, right? I thought maybe Hawaii, but the correct answer is Alaska
I really appreciate everything you said here. Connecting and creating are two things I am thankful for, too. I think creating contributes to society through sharing, and sharing our creations creates connection. So, it does seem to be all connected. But, I agree, that we can always do more to contribute and create connection.
The turkey images made me smile.
We have a ton of them here in MN, and often, the traffic slows down because of them. :)
Bald eagles are some of my favorite animals!
Thanks for sharing!
Happy Thanksgiving! You had what looks like a greatly fun adventure with those speed-dating turkeys! The female turkeys may not have been impressed but those Tom’s looked pretty handsome to me.
I have never had the pleasure of seeing turkeys in the wild…I’ve only ever come across them on farms.
And, as an expat, we have gotten to a routine where we make and eat pepperkaker (ginger cookies) we roll and cut out with a turkey shaped cookie-cutter on Thanksgiving. Because there is no 4-day holiday in Norway, choosing the “cookie route” as a way to celebrate Turkey day has become our family’s tradition.
All the best to you and yours for a relaxing long holiday weekend!