Raptors

A couple months ago in the mountainous center of Austria I attended a conference and trade fair on shamanism. One day, members of a local club devoted to birds of prey showed up, dressed in traditional Austrian clothes and carrying their pets -- two falcons, two hawks and a golden eagle. The birds were very comfortable around people, allowing themselves to be petted. Their faces seemed the essence of pride. They kept forgetting that they were tied to their owners' arms. They would see someplace they wanted to fly to, and launch themselves toward it, and immediately fall in a flurry of feathers that hung by a strap from the owner's leather glove. When this happened, the owner would immediately hoist the bird up again to his wrist, and for another few minutes it would not try to fly anywhere, just stare around boldly, the sovereign of all it surveyed.