The Circle of Life

It is mid-november and all the leaves have fallen. Tiny empty nests of birds come in full view on the trees. Today I picked up a small abandoned nest. I am amazed at the beauty and symmetry of the nest. So light, yet robust. Soft inside with an opening that was a perfect circle. 

The circle that I saw reminded me of this quote by Black Elk (Oglala Sioux)

 "You have noticed that everything an Indian does is in a circle, and that is because the Power of the World always works in circles, and everything tries to be round..... The Sky is round, and I have heard that the earth is round like a ball, and so are all the stars. The wind, in its greatest power, whirls. Birds make their nest in circles, for theirs is the same religion as ours.... Even the seasons form a great circle in their changing, and always come back again to where they were. The life of a man is a circle from childhood to childhood, and so it is in everything where power moves."