\inyoni

The guinea fowl make a ruckus. Roosting in near-by trees, they entertain us before dusk, wake us in the early morning, and interrupt our sleep. Larger than the average chicken, as awkward as toddler’s drawings, they seek a mate for life. Swazis even named September after these “Inyonis”, but I guess they are a month late in their wild mating. Tonight, the full moon adds a touch of romance to their pursuits.

Like many animals (and humans!), the guinea fowls mate for life. Should something happen to their mate, they will carry on living and never mate again. We spot them scurrying across the cane field two-by-two. Peeking their heads into the neighbor’s garden – in pairs. They even squawk in a duet.

The writings of Henry Nouwen, dolloped with our morning dose of Proverbs, have refreshed in my mind, the need for unity with our Lord. How sweet is the pursuit of this King. He stops at nothing to come after us. He calls to us through whispers, the breeze, a moving worship song, everything nature, and all things beautiful. He meets us in the comfort of bare feet buried in tilled soil, fingers wrapped around a warm cup on a cool night, and a shared smile.

Don’t these moments remind us of who we really are? Who we are at our core. When we’re really ourselves, aren’t we most-closely Christ? Made in the image of this God, the essence of who we are – is really Him, manifested in our unique physical bodies. When we ‘find our true selves’, we’re really finding our completed selves in this ‘other’ that is ‘also us.’

Isn’t that how it is with a lover? The guinea fowl know it.  Couples married for 50+ show it. Dogs even reveal it. Give yourself totally over to someone – you’ll go anywhere with him or her, trust them wholly, listen to them unarguably, and even look like them.

Let us realize that in giving into God, we’re really finding our true selves in our soul’s mate.