A Goose or a Moose?

Many years ago on a family trip to Colorado, I fell in love ... with a moose. We were driving through Rocky Mountain National Park, and we stopped along the side of the road because a lot of other cars had stopped. I don't remember which of my kiddos spotted him first, but we quickly exited the car and joined the other folks who were watching as the majestic animal grazed quietly at the edge of a small creek. We crept softly toward him, Matt with camera in hand, mesmerized by the size and quite obvious strength contained within the beast's rippling muscles as he shifted his weight from leg to leg while he munched on the tender reeds. I stood in sheer wonder at the regal creature before me, amazed at the manner in which he lowered his antler-crowned head to the water with such poise and gracefulness. I'm not sure how long we stood there that afternoon watching him, but I do know this ... on that sunny Colorado afternoon, I learned to appreciate the magnificence of God's creation in a way I never had before.

Since the afternoon of my chance encounter with the moose (the first real live moose I'd ever seen, I might add), I've learned a great deal about the largest species in the deer family. For example, did you know that the antlers of a moose are called palmate antlers because they are more leaf-shaped than the dendritic (or twig-shaped) antlers of other members of the deer family? Or that moose are herbivores and are capable of consuming a huge variety of plants and fruits? Or that the average bull moose (the male) can weigh as much as 1,500 pounds and eat up to 100 pounds of food per day? While I could continue to delight you with a plethora of lesser-known facts about moose, there's just one more I want to share and it's the one I want you to think about, to ponder, to mull over, to consider at length ... unlike most other deer species, moose are solitary animals and do not form herds. Moose are solitary animals and do not form herds ... hold that thought for a bit, and I'll come back to it.

Back in 2010, I wrote a post titled "Make Me a Goose," and in that post I talked about how geese take care of one another if one of them is sick or wounded ... a goose that's in trouble is never left to suffer alone. Back then, I only knew a little about geese, but I've learned a ton about them over the last couple of years. For example, geese fly in the V formation because it creates an uplift for the bird immediately following the one ahead. By flying together in the V, geese have a 71 percent greater flying range than if each bird flew alone. Geese take turns leading the formation because that's the most difficult position in which to fly ... that's the position with the greatest wind and velocity resistance, so the leader of the V has to work 100 times as hard as the geese that are following. Ever wonder why geese honk? Geese flying in formation are honking as a means to encourage the head goose to keep flying.

Remember what I said about moose being solitary animals that don't form herds? Unlike a goose who will never leave a wounded or sick member of their flock to suffer or die alone, a strong, healthy moose will kill another moose that is wounded, ill or weak. Now here's the thing ... I think people are a lot like animals sometimes, and I think at least a few of us, myself included, would have to admit that we behave more often like a moose than a goose. We are solitary in our self-oriented lives ... we only look out for our own interests and don't concern ourselves with the needs  or hurt or pain of others. We attack those of our own who are wounded or struggling to keep the pace, and we kill their spirits with hate and unkind words. Instead of staying with the one who needs our love and compassion, we kick them when they are down and leave them to either find their own way out or die alone. And we certainly don't honk our encouragement to the one who is working the hardest to keep the rest of us moving forward toward our destination.

I can't speak for you, but I know what my prayer is tonight ... my prayer is that God will make me the best possible goose I can be ... that He will take away my selfish, uncaring mooseness and fill me with His loving, compasssionate gooseness. Make me a goose, Lord ... please ... make me a goose.