Tuesday, January 5, 2010

They Flew Too High

What's that up in the tree?
Let's look a little closer.

Balloons that flew too high


Icarus flew too high, as well. Right to the sun
.


We were driving along yesterday when I spotted these colorful balloons against the blue winter sky. They had somehow gotten loose and floated too high, where they were stuck in the bare branches of a tree. And when I saw them, the first thing that came to mind was the Greek myth of Icarus. Don't ask me why, that's just the way my mind works. You see, Icarus got away and flew too high, too. Icarus and his father were exiled in Crete, and Icarus' father thought of an escape plan. They would simply fly away! He made two pairs of wings out of feathers and wax. Putting a pair on Icarus, he warned his son not to fly too close to the sun or the sea. Icarus took off. But he was soon overcome with the giddiness of flying and with curiosity. He flew too close to the sun and it melted his wings. He still kept flapping, but only with his bare arms. And so he fell into the sea and drowned. The Icarian Sea bears his name. The story of Icarus and the story of Adam and Eve both seem the same to me. None of them listened to their fathers, and death resulted. It just took a little longer for Adam and Eve. It's a story as old as the hills. Icarus was curious and distracted by the beautiful sun, Adam and Eve by the serpent. When God created Satan, he was beautiful, an angel of light, and I believe the serpent must have been beautiful as well. Perhaps nothing like the serpants we know now. It was only later that God cursed him to crawl on his belly. It's usually the beautiful things in this life that distract us and cause us to fall. Over and over again this story repeats itself, and I believe it always will. One of my blog friends, Sandra, has a sympathy and affinity for things ugly or unwanted. She sees the beauty in them. She knows that "All that glitters is not gold", as the saying goes. But some things that don't glitter are gold. And looking for the hidden beauty in them can be pretty rewarding.

"And the Lord God commanded the man "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it, you will surely die." Genesis 2:17












4 comments:

SquirrelQueen said...

That's a lot of balloons, someone is going to be disappointed at their party. My brother-in-law has a saying about distractions, sometimes talking about me, "she saw something shiny..".
Judy

aspiritofsimplicity said...

We used to tell my children that the balloons went to children who did not get balloons and somehow that made them feel better.
I agree that we tend to be distracted by things that are pretty or things that feel good.
This was a very thought provoking post.

MadSnapper said...

I like the pictures of the baloons and getting closer and closer. and you are so right, I have a heart for ugly and unwanted not matter if it be human or animal or trees,flowers and leaves. I see beauty in what most people would see ugly. it is my belief that under what is not pleasing to look at there is beauty. thanks for the mention
tell your husband I am so sorry he has to buy you another plant and it is all my fault.

storyteller said...

Lovely colorful balloons flying up into the sky. Thanks for visiting my sunrise surprise at Small Reflections. I had a good time with my sister making tamales yesterday but find I'm way behind on blog visits today.
Hugs and blessings,

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