Bird, Watching – Stories, Essays & Poems by Michelle Goering

I am unashamed to admit I have fallen prey to the Millennial trend of bird watching. It brings me so much joy! As does this book by Michelle Goering, part of which is based on whimsical conversations between the author and a series of birds. And that’s only part of the book!

In this interview, Michelle shares with us how important journalling and writing is to her, and how central the arts are to personal transformation and building community. Here’s our conversation:

Can you please tell us a little bit about yourself?

I grew up in a Mennonite farming community in rural Kansas. I became a Baha’i in my early 20s, and have been living in San Diego since 2004. I’ve been married for 35 years, and have young adult sons. I’ve got a professional background in publishing, and now do some freelance editing. I love word games, singing and playing guitar with others, having deep conversations, and laughing with new friends. I’m always working on building community and widening my circle of friends; I see these human connections as the antidote to our collective suffering.

Can you please tell us a little bit about Bird, Watching?

This book is made of three parts. The first section—the part with the birds!—is a series of imagined conversations between a human narrator and various feathered companions. Each little story begins with the line: “The bird looked at me. I looked at the bird.” In that moment, human and bird connect, and the narrator explores spiritual truths in the course of each brief conversation, some ridiculous, some transcendent. They’re illustrated with beautiful pen and ink drawings of the different species of birds, by my Baha’i friend Robert Bassett.

The second section contains eighteen poems on everything from biscuits as a remedy for heartache, to the shock of finding oneself the adult in charge, to how we can show up for the truth of our oneness.

In the third part, I’ve shared 35 short personal essays. They explore a wide range of topics: my Mennonite and Amish ancestry, letting go of my young adult children, my brief typewriter infatuation, becoming an orphan in adulthood, and connecting with the natural world while living in the city. Some are funny, some poignant, and all are true!

What inspired you to create this book?

I have always journaled for my mental health and personal enjoyment. But I began writing with more intention in 2020. Everyone I know went through so many changes during the pandemic. That spring my twin sons were graduating from high school, my husband Tim began working from home, my mother went into hospice care in another state, and I was diagnosed with breast cancer. I had a lot to process! And time opened up for me. I found writing helped me understand the changes I was going through and helped me to focus on the spiritual realities underlying these earthly concerns. I thought others would be able to relate to my experiences, so I wanted to share them.

Who is its audience?

I dedicated this book to everyone listening for the “intimations of the spirit, these emanations from the deep recess of the heart” that Abdu’l-Baha talks about. I am working to become a bridge through my writing, to write essays and stories and poems that are truthful and compassionate, that will touch hearts and resonate as true for others. It’s not a “Baha’i book” per se, but everything I talk about is of course informed in some way by my many years as a Baha’i, and that comes through in the writing.

What’s something you’ve learned in the process of making this book?

I’ve learned that I can share experiences and realizations with others, and this can be a help to them. I’ve learned a lot about myself; I’ve come to a new understanding of death and of parenting and of marriage—many areas of my life have been clarified for me in the writing process.

The other thing I’ve learned is that working with a team is crucial! This book was written by me, but inspired and critiqued by an online Baha’i writing group called Write Life, edited and designed by Anne Gordon Perry with a beautiful jacket by Nasim Yazdani, and now read by old and new friends. The collective effort is energizing and has made the book so much better! I’m grateful to everyone who has participated.

What do you hope readers will take away with them?

I hope my fellow travellers will be uplifted by what I’ve shared. I hope they will be entertained, that they will feel seen and understood, and value their own deeper knowing.

What is some advice you’d give to anyone pursuing Baha’i-inspired creative work?

Baha’i-inspired is a wonderful term. Everything we create can serve Baha’u’llah’s plan, if it comes from a desire to express our spiritual reality in some way, and to help bring us to our higher selves. It has taken me many years to take my creative projects seriously. They felt self-serving and trivial. But I now see the arts as critical to our learning and survival, because they help us go beyond our usual head-centred processing and connect our hearts: to God, to others, and to spiritual truths.

I guess my advice would be: creative work is not frivolous, a diversion, or an add-on after we’ve done our administrative tasks. It is key to the process of community building and personal transformation. Make time for it in your own life and share it widely. Be a champion of that process for others who show their creative spark. We can bring so much understanding and healing and joy to others through our creative work.

Thank you so much, Michelle, for taking the time to share this with us!

You can purchase Bird, Watching from Amazon. Australian and other readers outside the US can also contact [email protected] for an alternative purchasing option.

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Sonjel Vreeland

In her innermost heart, Sonjel is a stay-at-home parent and a bookworm with a maxed out library card but professionally she is a museologist with a background in English Literature. She currently lives on Prince Edward Island, an isle in the shape of a smile on the eastern Canadian coast. Sonjel is a writer who loves to listen to jazz when she's driving at night.