Western Meadowlark : The Stories We Tell
This is a Western Meadowlark. He’s a stunning icon of this area. I encountered him in a meadow at the base of the mountains. He’s found a scrub pine, a relative high spot, to share his song. I watched him for some time, wondering if he’s calling to a mate or defining a territory. In a sense, I felt enticed to create a story around him, filling in the gaps, telling the tale from my own perspective. I am nothing if not a storyteller! Simultaneously, though, I have to be cautious. I try to approach this invitation with great humility. What are his facts I empirically observe? And what elements are mine, made up from whole cloth? Discerning between these two components of someone’s tale can often be overlooked - or even purposefully ignored.
Normative Jewish tradition is composed of multiple parts. Of course there is the written Torah, the Bible. There are also oral traditions handed down from God to Moses at Mt. Sinai which have been passed along to subsequent generations. And there are millennia of commentary and elaboration from scholars and sages. Written Torah alone is a fraction of what it takes to guide a comprehensive life. Extrapolation, interpretation, storytelling - all of these are vital. Without our scholars and sages, poets and mystics, our life would be only a fraction of its potential. Just as secular government is premised on a constitution supplemented by laws and customs, so too our individual lives require a fleshed-out foundational text.
But a word of caution is in order. There are times when the stories we create, the interpretive lenses we impose, can obscure objective reality. We can become so comfortably ensconced in narratives we create that we fail to see they have displaced the actual facts. Of course we contextualize events and even people around us, but we must do so from a stance of profound humility, willingness to change, and realization that we could well be wrong. And it’s OK. The stories we tell are valuable when they enhance our lived experience. Seeing the Meadowlark, I’m fully cognizant of my appreciation - and my limits. May we all be open to that same vantage point, looking at all the rest of our lives.