His eyes were locked into mine, expressing as much shock as mine.
"Wolf!" I uttered.
It was a week ago, as I was driving slowly on a steep narrow road - a young wolf appeared on the left. He was as stunned to see me as was I.
For some reason, the experience was breathtaking. The wolf was so beautiful, healthy and strong with a shiny coat. At that moment, it seemed that this animal came out from an unseen world just for me. It was just right.
He disappeared as fast as he came, but the split-second encounter left a lasting impression on me.
Maybe it was the shock of an unexpected event but it felt that his gaze felt sent an electric strand. A strand that flew between two different worlds that don't ever meet, like entering another dimension.
It felt unexpected, primal, yet in a strange way familiar. It felt like for that split second the wolf shared with me some aspect of being that I have not felt in ages - survival, focus, instinct.
I could not get over the feeling of enormous gratitude for the encounter. For waking up a tiny bit of my being that was asleep. For resonating with me, human, in a metal box of a car.
It reminds me of the sensations in a deep forest - refreshment of the body and the soul. The shade, the moisture, the tightly closed world of tall firs, sensing the presence of thousands of different organisms, invisible to my eyes and mind.
I feel that presence encountering wide-open spaces where the volume of space just pours in and nourishes my body. In the fog that cleansing the fields. It is the connection that feels just right. The connections that I can't even shape into words. It feels like the taste of tomato that I grew myself. Or a special touch of linen pajamas. Little bits of familiarity for my body, for my skin, for the root of my being. Like coming home.
I hope to never lose the craving for these connections. Spending ridiculous amounts of time in the imaginary world of computers and mobile, I so easily forget about where we truly live. I get rational about spending another and another hour in front of the screen.
We worry about the state of the planet, the species, the plants but I think that underneath all of that, we all know that it's our own survival that is being threatened. When we forget about what's real and what's made up.
I think that the wolf's presence reminded me of the right to preserve some wildness in us, some independence we are all losing. I hope we all fight for the wholeness, the life force that connects us to nature and spirit. That we will keep finding the room and time for it. That we will keep finding small moments of reconnections that carry great gifts.
Janis Ihrig
March 11, 2019
I truly enjoyed this article. It is real to me of what you write and will pass it on. Thank you for contributing to the many worlds of which we live. You are bringing more life to all of us by sharing.