[What best describes your line of work?]

Birds! That’s what I should have said!

Why not? Because there are unspoken rules [bird-mind-cages?] that dictate what constitutes a suitable answer? Because we all need to sound very professional and serious? Because we are not supported to create our own stories? What good does that really do for people and planet, I wonder.

None of the responses that came to mind seemed to encompass my [line of work]. And none were life-giving. Except for birds.

Birds. Sometimes quietly collecting little twigs of information, observing the flowers and drinking their nectar, noticing the patterns in the leaves and the changes in the winds.

When in nesting season, more magpie, nurturing what needs to be and swooping when necessary.

Perched on a branch, some days my spirit feels more kookaburra-like, ready for a burst of contagious laughter that reminds us we are alive and to look out for delicious worms.

When the time is right, the cormorant self is ready to dive into the water and intervene.

Magpie, kookaburra and cormorant might huddle up and sing stories together. Or they might open their wings and fly away because that’s what people and I need.

Birds.

I am not sure that would work in the forms of the policy security borders, I might stick to [project manager] for that one.

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