We went hiking through the jungles of Central America. There is a rare bird in this scene.
As we emerged from jungle’s undergrowth to this raised open area, our guide immediately pointed, and said, there’s a male quetzal. I couldn’t see the bird. Even when he pointed in the direction, I still couldn’t see. He positioned a telescope for me to look through, and, sure enough, amongst the green leaves, I could see some green feathers from a bird’s tail.
How did the guide spot this green bird, and so quickly? After 20 years experience he must know where to look. Which trees these birds like, their patterns during the day, where in the tree they sit, what sounds they make. Heuristics.
All heuristics to help him know where to look with the best chance of spotting this rare bird. This skill must an innate human skill (relevance realisation) which many have directed to the art of bird watching, perhaps sometimes with fascination and obsession. For others it’s directed towards undervalued shares, business opportunities, rarities at flea markets – but one of the first pursuits must have been finding rare, beautiful and exquisite birds. The mythological stories make reference to these birds in many stories. Spotting and finding a rare bird makes a good metaphor for finding what’s important in life, and how we go about doing that.