20160529 (pattern)

Who, seeing geese overhead, has not wondered at the pattern?

Two days ago geese flew low

Overhead, south for the summer.

I had seen them while walking

Sampson, a beautiful Golden-Collie

Mix I had sub-adopted from my

Son Andy, near Horseshoe

Lake in Shaker Heights both in

The crisp fall and the gently

Warming spring. To see them

Landing on the pond, their 

Webbed feet splayed ahead

Of them like water skis was

A treat for ears and eyes second

Only to their taking off again.

As the flapping of their wings

Brought their bodies up and 

Forward their webbed feet 

Seemed to run across the 

Surface until they were fully

Airborne. You could hear the

Exuberant honking and in the

Background the buzzy fluttering

Of their feathers, as they plowed

Upward to join with others in

The customary chevron for the

Long flight. Typical of migratory

Birds in flocks, the pattern is a

Remarkable product of evolutionary

Development. The lead bird

Central and low in the formation

Sets the direction for the rest 

Rising left and right from each

Wing of the leader. They are 

Slightly behind and a shade 

Above the leader and equally

Spaced from the front to the 

Rear of the group. Turns out 

It is not the product of long

Range planning on their 

Behalf prior to setting out.

The practice flows quite

Naturally from the beating

Of their wings through the

Air reduces the disturbance

So that each goose benefits

From the effort of the goose

Ahead, maximizing the 

Efficiency of flight for the 

Group overall. Likewise,

They can easily see each

Other. In a short book titled,

High Flying Geese, the 

Author, Brown Barr, uses

The practice to illustrate an

Effective method of shared

Leadership in organizations,

Particularly smaller one. The

Geese rotate the role of leader

So that the most taxing position

Is equally shared, which allows

The lead goose to rest as he 

Relinquishes the fore position

To a more rested goose, moving

Further back, until it is again

His turn to be first. The geese

Are not so different that only

Some are leaders. All share 

That capacity naturally. Less

Burnout for the stressed,

Barr argues. Truly the whole

Here is more than the sum

Of the parts. Everybody gets

Their time in the sun and

Contributes to the project.

Generally I’m loathe to use

Nature analogues for human

Behavior, but this one is so

Apt and has universal appeal.

We didn’t need to discover

It ourselves, wings flapping

In the wind for centuries, while

The genetic advantage comes 

To dominate. No, just look up

And figure out why.

c. J.S.Manista, 2016