Long ago a young boy was born to a couple, who loved him very much. Their desire was to raise him to be passionate about life.
They lived in a small coastal village; in a cottage with flint walls and an array of flowers surrounding the front door.
From the boy’s bedroom, at the front of the cottage, he had a fantastic view of the sea. Every evening, he watched the waves crash against the rocks and opened the window to breathe in the sea air.
In the daytime, he enjoyed running along the seashore with his friends. Together they regularly sat watching the fishing boats come in after a hard days work. They watched the large passenger boats with their big sails too.
At night he slept and dreamt of working as part of the ship’s crew. Sometimes, he imagined himself sailing through the treacherous sea. The winds were high and whistling and the waves crashed against the side of the ship. Other nights he dreamt of sailing through a calm sea. He was peaceful, relaxing on the deck with his crew This was exactly where he wanted to be.
Time passed and the boy grew into a young man. One day he managed to secure a job as a deckhand on a large ship.
Eventually, the day arrived when he would make his first voyage. He waved goodbye to his parents and boarded the Ship. As he stepped onto the deck he took a deep breath and his stomach fluttered with excitement. He was fulfilling his dream.
Exquisitely decorated and finely furnished, this ship could master the fiercest winds and the highest seas; moving smoothly and gracefully through the waters with strength and determination, sometimes drifting, sometimes moving at top speed.
He joined an exceptionally experienced crew who were large in number, varied in age and skill and colourful personalities. A warm and lively crew who had worked together for many years and felt proud of delivering a fantastic service. They trusted the ship and each other, there was an energy between them that carried them through anything.
Passengers from all walks of life waited for their chance to embark a voyage. The experience remained with them for the rest of their days.
One evening there was a change in the air the wind shifted and began to gust heavily. Foam capped tops appeared on the tips of the growing swells on the sea. The young man was up mopping the deck. Sadly, the enthusiasm he possessed when he first boarded the ship was gone. His motivation had waned, his energy was low.
He had been working hard cleaning the ship and had not been placed in what he thought was an important post. His head hung low, shoulders hunched and breathing shallow. He sighed; he felt lonely, tired and sad, missing his home, fun and his friends and missing his dreams of the exciting voyages where he sailed as a valued crew member.
Suddenly, his melancholy stance was disturbed, a passenger tapped his shoulder. He startled and jumped back. She spoke to him with concern in her voice, informing him that she had noticed a rope hanging loose on one of the sails. She looked agitated and explained to the young man that never had she noticed this sort of untidiness on a ship before, normally she spent time admiring the neatly tied knots on the sails.
He hesitated to respond and looking up at the sails, he wondered what he should do. After all, it wasn’t his job to secure the sails. He was just a deckhand!
Whilst staring at the rope hanging from the sail, something else caught his eye, it was a flock of birds flying together in a formation. His spirit soared and he soon felt himself carried by the wind, flying with the birds high above the sails.
He felt the cool wind on his body and the power and exhilarating energy of flying together. A deep knowing that he could fly tremendous distances with his flock, far more than he could ever fly alone.
He fell a little, from the formation. Feeling the drag and air resistance from trying to go it alone. He knew he had to muster up all his strength to catch up, so as to take advantage of the lifting power of the bird immediately in front of him. A strong wind blew – the sky darkened… and below he saw his ship tipping to one side. The loose rope was now tangled in the sails, flipping in the wind. He had been so busy flying with the birds he hadn’t realised what had been going on around him.
Back now, fully present with new insight – he felt the strong wind and watched as one of the sails flipped out of control, knocking a seaman overboard. There was chaos on deck, passengers had fear in their faces and the crew were herding people below deck.
The ship was losing its course!
He immediately spurred into action, throwing a life jacket and ring to the seaman who was splashing about in the water, he then climbed the sails, joining the other crew members who were already hoisting ropes and securing the sails. Even though he had only worked on the Ship for a short time, he knew exactly what to do, he had watched the crew members working together as a team since he was a young boy.
Soon, the sails were secure and the Ship which had threatened to capsize was saved. The winds still blew, but stability was restored and the passengers settled down.
Wet, sweaty and exhilarated he climbed down from the sails with the rest of the crew and as they stood on deck together, he looked up a saw the flock of birds far in the distance, flying in formation and disappearing over the horizon.
His dramatic experience of flying with the flock of birds had shown him the real importance of team formation and working together for the well-being of all.
The winds calmed and the moon shone on the water and the ship safely sailed on with a fully manned crew working in unison together to complete the journey they had begun.
Each of the crew on this ship is special and unique, like you who bring to the team, a wealth of talents an perspectives, irrespective of your age or position.
Some of you encourage those in front of you and some offer help and support to those who may be struggling to keep up.
When illness or weariness strikes, you step in for each other.
Each crew member, like each bird in the flock, like you, is vital to the success of the operation of the routine, the service, to the delivery of the day, the event, the journey. It’s necessary to fly together to benefit from the team dynamic.
The blend of us all produces strength and creativity. Our common direction, like crew, like the flock of birds, focuses our diverse and unique talent into a productive and effective dynamic.
Flying, sailing, working together is our privilege as well as a responsibility for all of us.
Copyright. Tracy Seed wrote this story for the Saplings Early Years Group annual conference in 2004.
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