Morning Outside (Entry 8)

After being forced to remain inside to avoid a powerful coldfront for much of last week, I was pleased to have the opportunity to go outside this morning to enjoy a day of natural beauty. I went out to my backyard, and I made my way to a tree that offers a great deal of shade along the edge of the property. 

I set my focus on a pair of birds that were hopping between the branches of a tree in the center of the yard. The smaller of the two birds was clearly a baby following its parent, as indicated by both the size difference and the remants of infantile down feathers that lined its neckline. The movements of the baby bird were slightly more awkward, but I was amazed by the level of agility and dexterity that nature granted it so quickly. I was disappointed that they were not participating in any type of song, but their head movements hinted to me that they were far too busy in the hunt for food to indulge in any type of recreation. Given the apparent familial connection, it was odd to see that there was no warmth between the two animals but only a playing out of seemingly thoughtless, instinctive behaviors.

I then shifted my attention downward as a chaotic bundle of ants caught my eye. Their mound was about six feet from my outstretched legs - normally too close for comfort - and it was built to an impressive size of about five inches in diameter. I noted how clever they were to construct it among the tall weeds in an elevated area along the fence rather than in a lower area more prone to rain or in the grass whose growth had been stunted in recent weeks. Perhaps this awareness can be explained away as the work of instinct, but I truly felt in that moment that they may be able to reason in a manner that I never appreciated before. 

After moving to another edge of the yard, I piqued the interest of a stray kitten that had been born in my neighbor's yard only a few months prior. It was hyper-aware of all movements that I made, hissing and scooting backwards with even the slightest sound of a leaf crunching or twig snapping, and it remained close to the gap under the fence that it used as a passageway. Its curiosity had brought it to within twenty feet of me, but it refused to come any nearer as if repelled by a natural magnetism. I am sure it would have loved to refuse the order imposed by its nature to investigate the strange creature that stood before it, but I never got the slightest feeling that such a hope could overcome the instinct that was so obvious in all of its actions. 

I do not know what to make of the instincts that seem to play a major role in the animal kingdom, nor do I understand to what extent these instincts can be tempered by the animal that possesses them. It does raise the question of whether humans have any instincts, and it also makes me wonder if having these instincts would limit our free will just as it does to animals or if we could overcome them by force.