Chronicles of a Modern Pict
June 21, 2000
Solar Flys and Sun Flowers
Sitting
at my desk, sipping a hot cup of brewed java, I watch the sun
rise from behind a magnificent 200 year old sugar pine, and soak
up the incredible solitude of the new morning. If only the spinning
hard drive and fan of my computer were not necessary in order
for me to write these words... My desk is actually a virtual
laboratory connected by underground data cables to a grid of
sensors and distant computers physically located in my laboratory,
a five minute walk from here. Web-based computer screens of digital
widgets and gadgets tell me in terms of precise solar units the
moment the Sun approaches the horizon to share his energy, while
on my desk are two little solar toys my daughter and I constructed
that wait for their moment of solar contact to activate circuits
and motors in an attempt to mimic life that they designed to
artificially simulate. The Solar Fly, with its photo-voltaic
wings and photo-sensitive eyes, charges up its capacitors with
the first photons of the morning, and in a few seconds sends
out a pulse of power to its small wheeled legs. Its eyes tell
its simple brain which wheel to activate in order to find that
part of my desk with the most intense sunlight. A corral of file
folders, a stapler and a small statue of Yoda keep my little
fly from quenching its inexorable thirst for sunlight in a Kamikaze-style
dive off the edge of the desk. On the window sill sits a more
rooted artificial life form, a stylized sunflower constructed
from the same circuitry as the fly, but designed to point its
digital inflorescence perpendicular to the suns ray, and then
anxiously track the sun for the course of its path across the
sky.
The Sun is life for me,
and for the living and non-living ecosystem that now surrounds
me. As a man, I am told that the Sun is the spiritual connection
to my sex, the male God, the counter balance to the Moon, the
Goddess. I tend to agree although I dance under the full moon
each month, it is the solar events that fill me with maximum
spiritual energy. This years solstice was a poignant and powerful
celebration for me. My personal rituals are always outdoors in
one of several sacred spaces that I have worked over the years.
In my area of the world these spaces retain very strong energy
from being the site of Cahuilla (native American) ceremonies
for literally thousands of years. Some are registered archaeological
sites, while others have yet to be classified. Anyway, I spend
most of the day collecting herbs, 'talking' with animals, and
sipping the sensory pleasures of pure nature while the apex of
the Solstice draws near. This year my connections to bird spirits
are really strong. I'm seeing more variety and numbers than in
many years past, and the closeness I've encountered with many
of them is amazing.
My
spirit animals happen to be Eagle and Vulture, and I usually
wear their feathers whenever I invite them into ritual. This
year I decided to incorporate a Cahuilla "bird song"
into my ritual in honor of my year of birds. I choose the Four
Saints Lookout, the large outcrops to the east of my home, as
the place for my ritual. I was sitting on the summit, facing
south, a minute past the actual Solstice, and about two lines
into my song, a darkness was momentarily cast across my face.
I opened my eyes and all I could see was a huge dark silhouette.
In the 3-4 seconds it took for my eyes to adjust, I realized
that hovering less than 20 feet from me was a huge turkey vulture.
I continued my song and the bird dipped his wings and began a
slow circling around me, weaving in and out of my cone of energy.
At this point my goose bumps were getting goose bumps, and as
I finished the song my vulture came as close as arms reach before
he silently flew towards the north and out of sight. It was a
very good day... The Sun beckons, my cup is cold, and my toys
are happy... so am I!
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