2020: The Year of Vision

As I was looking over my photos from 2020, I came across this photo I took of a gorgeous red-tailed hawk on May 28, 2020—almost 3 months past the start of the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown in Colorado and just 3 days after the murder of George Floyd.

Red-tailed hawk at Standley Lake in Westminster, Colorado.

Then, just a few weeks ago, as I was walking through the horse farms behind my house on a blustery Colorado day, I looked directly above me to see a red-tailed hawk hovering overhead, almost as if frozen in suspension. Turns out, the red-tailed hawk is one of the few birds that can utilize this “kiting” skill where it can hold still against the wind by setting its wings. I stood for probably 30 seconds, just looking up at this magnificent creature suspended in movement directly above me.

I believe in the messages and lessons that animals send us. And I seem to have a particular penchant for noticing hawks and eagles around my neighborhood. So I’ve learned to be curious about the lessons these powerful creatures may be inviting me to see.

Red-tailed hawks easily adapt to life, the circumstances, and the people around them. They are the type of hawk that most serves humans and can co-exist in various environments with people. The red-tailed hawk spends a lot of time observing its surroundings with its sharp vision and then using its keen awareness to act with precision and without fear. They can reach tremendous heights when flying, as they soar with seemingly effortless grace and ease.

Whether you believe in this kind of woo-woo stuff or not, I believe the hawk is here to give me wisdom and insights. As author A.A. Milne said:

“Some people talk to animals. Not many listen though. That’s the problem.”

There are so many lessons that have emerged from 2020. Indeed, our individual and collective experiences run the spectrum from expansion to contraction; death to life; connection to division; destruction to creation. So whether you’re reflecting on 2020 with despair or gratitude, I’d like to share what I’ve come to realize: that 2020 has been a call to greater vision. A call to the adaptability, observation, grace, decisiveness, and service of the hawk.

2020 has called on all of us to adapt to our new circumstances . . . to those around us . . . to our new working and home environments. And whether you liked it or not, you did it. Congratulations. Seriously . . . take a moment to honor your adaptability.

2020 also called on us to observe. To listen to those who were suffering. To become more aware of racism and racial injustice. To be more conscious of slowing down. To be more mindful of our actions. To observe social distancing and wearing masks to show that you actually care about other people.

2020 invited us to into extending grace—to ourselves and others. To be compassionate toward ourselves and others when our routines get thrown out the window. To respect and honor our differences. To admit when we are wrong.

2020 asked us to be decisive, often on the fly. To commit to taking action. To recognize that life is short and if we don’t act now, when will we act?

And finally, 2020 asked us to serve each other. To see that we are all one. To really see each other. And to show up for each other, where ever we find ourselves, and serve each other.

2020 may not have been the year we were expecting, but it was the year we all got. And that year did something more significant than what any of us could have expected.

It demanded more from us. It has called on us to have greater vision for ourselves and for others. It has tested us, educated us, and strengthened us. And like all pain in life, it has invited us to grow.

So here’s the hawk’s invitation to you—to reflect on:

• What was it about you that allowed you to get through 2020?

• In what ways did you demonstrate:

  • adaptability

  • observation

  • grace

  • decisiveness

  • service

• What has 2020 been calling on you to do that you haven’t stepped into yet?

• What strengths do you want to bring from 2020 into 2021?

However 2020 was for you, may you set your wings to brace against the winds so that you can glide with ease and grace into 2021.

And, in the words of Bob Seger:

“Stood alone on a mountain top, starin’ out at the Great Divide. I could go east, I could go west, it was all up to me to decide. Just then I saw a young hawk flyin’ and my soul began to rise. ”