When The Black Birds Fly

Several times over the last month or so as I’ve been walking home through Central Park I’ve witnessed massive flocks of black birds take flight. They appear to move as one, suddenly swarming upwards with a great surge and beating of wings for no discernible reason. A few feet off the ground, the feathered mass then selects a destination and spirals into action without hesitation, as one. How they signal one another, I cannot determine, but clearly there is some manner in which the group need is instantly communicated.

While there are plenty of books and magazines for new parents to read and a great many newborn mysteries to resolve during the first few months, being a new parent shares some commonality with the black birds taking flight. More often than not, I find that I just inherently “know” what a situation requires and move almost mechanically into action to affect the necessary solution. To be sure, there is much that is not obvious, that is learned through word of mouth, doctor’s or mother’s advice, and innumerable other sources. But much of what needs to be done simply comes instinctively. Oliver signals and we respond, providing the remedy. It becomes a kind of dance with the child with a hidden beat pulling us into the places we need to be, just as we need to be there.