Wednesday, March 26, 2014

JONATHAN LIVINGSTON SEAGULL -

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Always has been a favorite book of mine.

Photos from Pismo Beach.

Quotes from Richard Bach


“Your whole body, from wingtip to wingtip," Jonathan would say, other times, "is nothing more than your thought itself, in a form you can see. Break the chains of your thought, and you break the chains of your body, too.”



“Heaven is not a place, and it is not a time. Heaven is being perfect. -And that isn't flying a thousand miles an hour, or a million, or flying at the speed of light. Because any number is a limit, and perfection doesn't have limits. Perfect speed, my son, is being there.”





“He spoke of very simple things- that it is right for a gull to fly, that freedom is the very nature of his being, that whatever stands against that freedom must be set aside, be it ritual or superstition or limitation in any form.

"Set aside," came a voice from the multitude, "even if it be the Law of the Flock?"

"The only true law is that which leads to freedom," Jonathan said. "There is no other.” 





Why, Jon, why?" his mother asked. "Why is it so hard to be like the rest of the flock, Jon? Why can't you leave low flying to the pelicans, the alhatross? Why don't you eat? Son, you're bone and feathers!" "I don't mind being bone and feathers mom. I just want to know what I can do in the air and what I can't, that's all. I just want to know.” 





It was interesting to read the synopsis of the story - again - at Wiki

The book tells the story of Jonathan Livingston Seagull, a seagull who is bored with the daily squabbles over food. Seized by a passion for flight, he pushes himself, learning everything he can about flying, until finally his unwillingness to conform results in his expulsion from his flock.

An outcast, he continues to learn, becoming increasingly pleased with his abilities as he leads a peaceful and happy life.

One day, Jonathan is met by two gulls who take him to a "higher plane of existence" in that there is no heaven but a better world found through perfection of knowledge, where he meets other gulls who love to fly.  He discovers that his sheer tenacity and desire to learn make him "pretty well a one-in-a-million bird."  In this new place, Jonathan befriends the wisest gull, Chiang, who takes him beyond his previous learning, teaching him how to move instantaneously to anywhere else in the Universe. The secret, Chiang says, is to "begin by knowing that you have already arrived."  

Not satisfied with his new life, Jonathan returns to Earth to find others like him, to bring them his learning and to spread his love for flight. His mission is successful, gathering around him others who have been outlawed for not conforming. Ultimately, the very first of his students, Fletcher Lynd Seagull, becomes a teacher in his own right and Jonathan leaves to teach other flocks

4 comments:

sandy said...

I have misplaced my copy. Time to get a new one. Right now I am noticing a fascination with seagulls - whether at the lake where I live or the ocean where I visit. I even found out that there is a seagull that makes its' home in the desert and every evening flies from coast back to desert for the night. Fascinating!

cat's momma said...

I loved that book too! It was cool to read this blog and see your seagull pictures! Did you recently sketch the birds in your banner? They are so good!

sandy said...

yes, they are on my art blog

Out of Sight L said...

Oh my gosh they are so beautiful and I remember this, I read it..wow Sandy, wow