The Hummingbird Parable - A Metaphor for Life

Following our path in pursuit of our dreams, happiness and true purpose

Hi, I’m Sue and I write about the beauty and ingenuity of Nature, and how we can deepen our connection for our optimum health and wellbeing. Discover more Nature-inspired content on Spiral Leaf, Twitter and my video Nature Channel.

Life takes us on many different paths as we learn and grow in pursuit of our inner happiness, interests and true purpose. Influenced by the circumstances we find ourselves in, our innate talent, our curiosity, the opportunities presented to us and the support we receive from those around us, every journey follows its own path and there are often many twists and turns along the way.

It made me think of the Hummingbird, the smallest bird in the world and what this tiny creature can teach us about our life journey. They are marvels of the sky with their unique and impressive flying abilities; they catch the eye with their iridescent feathers; they have impossibly fast wings and skillful hovering capabilities. In folklore, the Hummingbird is messenger for the Goddess of the Rainbow, Iris, and the God of love, Eros. Their unique ability to fly backwards was seen as a symbol of the power of love to reverse time and change the course of fate.

The Hummingbird Parable

This also brings to mind The Hummingbird Parable written by environmentalist, Professor Wangari Maathai from Kenya. It's a wonderful story about commitment, belief in the power of the individual (however small) and the importance of doing our best, especially in sitations when we feel overwhelmed. 

The Parable of the Hummingbird is a story set in a huge forest which is being consumed by a fire. All the animals in the forest are terrified as they watch the forest burning. They are completely overwhelmed and powerless as a tiny Hummingbird comes towards them and says, ‘I’m going to do something about the fire!’

In so doing, the Hummingbird flies to the nearest stream, takes a drop of water and puts it on the fire. At the speed of light, the little bird flies up and down, left to right, forwards, backwards and even upside down to avoid the flames as it deposits its cargo, one tiny drop of water at a time. As the fire rages, the Hummingbird keeps going as the other animals stand around feeling helpless.

As they watch the efforts of the Hummingbird, they ask, ‘What do you think you can do? You are too little. This fire is too big. Your wings are too tiny and your beak is so small, you can only bring a small drop of water at a time.’ They continue to discourage the little bird until it turns to them without wasting any time and says quite simply, ‘I might be the smallest bird in the world but I am doing the best I can.’

A mataphor for life

If you have ever had the pleasure of observing a Hummingbird, you will notice how they fly with absolute precision and speed. They are able to hover perfectly in one place, fly to the right, to the left, upwards, downwards, backwards and upside down.

This reminds us that the lighter we are, free from burden and stress, the more we are able to move through life with elegance, grace and ease. It also brings to mind the importance of being still to maintain our equilibrium and find our inner peace.

Hummingbirds are able to flash their bright coloured wings and hide them when they do not want to be seen.

This reminds us that it is wise to know when to be outgoing and show our best colours in a given situation and when it might be best to retreat, observe, listen, be quiet or stay still.

In Henry Miller's book - Stand Still Like The Hummingbird [1962] - Hummingbirds are portrayed as a metaphor for coping with chaos, stress and life in general. Standing still refers to the bird’s ability to hover due to their oversized heart as they extract as much sweet and nutritious nectar from the beautiful flowers they rely on for food.

This reminds us to be still and to go within when we need to find peace, to rest or take stock, especially when we feel overwhelmed, tired, sad or drained of energy.

Hummingbirds have the largest hearts for their body size of all birds, beating at more than 1,000 times per minute.

This reminds us to connect with our hearts so that we always act with good intentions and spread the love, using our minds for practical matters, planning ahead, critical thinking, creativity and how best to address the challenges that come our way.

Hummingbirds have a large brain which is represents 4.2 percent of its total body weight, much larger than other birds. This means they are highly intelligent with exceptional memories. Not only do they remember which flowers they have visited, they know how long it takes for the nectar to re-fill.

This reminds us to stay present in the moment, to focus on the activity in hand (in rest, work and play) and to enjoy what we are doing as best we can. This is how we extract life's sustaining nectar - by doing what we love, being self-sufficient, investing in our creativity and following our hearts.

Having worked through a hidden fear that needed to be addressed, recovered from a shutting down episode and recharging my batteries, I recommend the following quote by Henry Miller which we can all take comfort from when we feel fearful, challenged or overwhelmed:

When you can go neither backward or forward, when you discover you are no longer able to stand, sit or lie down, when you realise you can neither write nor not write, when you are convinced all the exits are blocked, either you take to believing in miracles or you stand still like the Hummingbird. The miracle is that the honey is always there, right under your nose, only you were too busy searching elsewhere to realise it. The worst is not death but being blind, blind to the fact that everything about life is in the nature of the miraculous.

The Hummingbird Hawk Moth

Unfortunately for me, Hummingbirds are not found anywhere in Europe, they live only in the Americas. The cold conditions during Ice Ages drove them away and they never returned. Instead, we have the Hummingbird Hawk Moth (see below) which closely resembles the Hummingbird and can often be seen in urban and suburban gardens across the British Isles.

With a wingspan of 40-50 mm, these Summer visitors migrate from Southern Europe every year to feed on the nectar of Honeysuckle, Red Valerian and other flowers.

If you see a Hummingbird Hawk Moth, it is considered to be a good omen bringing good luck and the promise of personal transformation.

It's a Summer visitor to the British Isles, migrating from Southern Europe each year to feed on the nectar of Honeysuckle, Red Valerian and other flowers. If you see a Hummingbird Hawk Moth, it is considered to be an omen bringing good luck and the promise of personal transformation.

[Hummingbird Hawk Moth by Jaakko Kemppainen, Unsplash]

My Spiral Leaf Journey

I started my Spiral Leaf journey soon after the lockdown in March 2020 as I was sharing photographs and findings from my daily escapades into the countryside.

I kept within a 15 mile radius from my home and was blessed to be able to explore some beautiful parts of South Devon encompassing Dartmoor, the forests of Halden Hill and the South West Coastal Path. I also found countless forgotten Public Footpaths which I drove around searching for in an otherwise deserted landscape.

Sharing my finds online became a lifeline for me and for those who were unable to go outside or be able to escape to beaches, healthlands, moorland, rivers, woodlands and fields. During this time, I built a large collection of photographs and spent time studying Nature, Natural Health and Folklore while evolving my spiritual understand of myself and the world. It meant I could share helpful information on every post and create short poeticals to brighten someone’s day and bring them closer to Nature.

This gave me the inspiration to build my Sprial Leaf website which contains hundreds of timeless blog posts, free downloads, poems, book reviews, recipes, galleries, almanacs and videos - all inspired by Nature. It’s a space I hope Nature-lovers will continue to return to for felaxing, being closer to Nature or learning something new.

Joining Substack in December last year gave me the opportunity to write longer essays about Nature and share what I have learned from my natural health and spiritual healing experiences such as going organic and connecting with Nature in meaningful ways. As with Spiral Leaf, I will post here as often as I can as I move into the next phase of my life purpose.

This is to share the life work and legacy of my late Dad, Jeff Cartwright. It’s time to share his world-first research and models for creating the ideal culture for human actualisation and his methodology for measuring the motivation of people. This coincides with adapting the models and methodology for Home Education which is a continuation of my life purpose having giving Mother Nature a voice and public platform.

I am now preparing to write my first book to help children actualise themselves and all that this involves so please bear with me. I will always be here to respond to your comments and share insights as I progress on this exciting journey.

Thank you for being here and I look forward to seeing you again soon.