The Eagle

Thursday transformational storytelling.

It’s definitely becoming a tradition to publish a story weekly. I find a lot of joy in researching, sharing and reflecting on them. It’s lovely to see so many people engaging and leaving feedback. Thank you!

This time the source is an adaptation from an Anthony de Mello story. I hope you enjoy!

One day a farmer found an abandoned eagle’s nest and in it was an egg still warm. He took the egg back to his farm and laid it in the nest of one of his hens. The egg hatched and the baby eagle grew up along with the other chickens. It pecked about the farmyard, scrabbling for grain. It spent its life within the yard and rarely looked up.

At some point when it was very old, it lifted up its head and saw above it a wonderful sight — an eagle soaring high above in the sky. Looking at it, the old creature sighed and said to itself:

“If only I’d been born an eagle.”

— — —

This story instantly reminded me of the quote about the shark in a fish tank (whom I am not sure it belongs to) that says: “A shark in a fish tank will grow 8 inches, but in the ocean it will grow to 8 feet or more. The shark will never outgrow its environment and the same is true about you.”

How much does our environment affect our growth and what other valuable insights can we discover within the story of the eagle?

Thank you for reading! If the story resonated with you, I encourage you to publish something in response to it or leave some feedback on this article.

Hope Coalesce, Egypt Iredia, Estonia Cornett, Ed Newman, The Growth Mindset Gal, Joseph Lieungh

P.S: I try to tag different/new contributors each week to engage as many of you as possible, but please feel free to share your insights even if you haven’t been tagged or if you’re not part of Know Thyself.