Hummingbirds - spiritual teachers

Theo & Gloria Ferguson live in Trinidad in their home called Yerette – Home of the Hummingbird – a home that they share with thousands of hummingbirds.

It is a kind of magical and enchanted fairy-tale place that takes you on a spiritual journey as you are enraptured in a state of sustained awe of nature close-up. Yerette is regularly referred to as a spiritual place, heaven, a church, an ashram, a temple, a magical place, an enchanted place.

‘I do not play golf and I do not drink rum. I take pictures, particularly hummingbird pictures”.

'‘The “Yerette Experience” provides the context for my photography and allows me to display my photos as part of a highly animated hummingbird story, thus, giving life and liveliness to the photos. The “Yerette Experience” is the canvas against which the photos are painted – so to speak.

To me, photos must capture the spirit of life and speak loudly to the viewer. A great photo should elicit a sense of awe as it envelops the viewer with a sense of connectivity to nature, and in the context of Yerette, to hummingbirds, one of nature’s most mysterious creatures.'

In taking a great photo, I experience a sense of Chi (energy), the energy that a great photo should transmit to viewers when it is on display.

Perhaps, I am just an Artist, combining photography with contemporary art. I see Yerette as a living artistic expression that brings together nature, photography talk (performance) and food to produce the spiritually moving outcome that we call, the “Yerette Experience”.

Yes, I am a hummingbird caretaker. My wife and I view the thousands of hummingbirds at our home as nature’s blessing on us and we strongly believe that we have a spiritual responsibility to take care of them. We do so willingly and joyfully.

It is definitely not a job, for it is never work. Yerette is a fun activity that energizes our lives to see and share the beauty and abundance of nature with others. It provides us with a great reason to be alive!

Absolutely breathtaking! Spiritually exhilarating! Stunning! Magnificent! Utterly captivating! Enchanting!”

“Hummingbirds and Spiritual Connectivity

As humans, we now live in a rapidly urbanizing and increasingly distractive world. It is a world in which we are becoming less sensitive to the environment around us as we progressively isolate ourselves in our air-conditioned homes, offices, shopping malls, and automobiles. We are constantly under the bombardment of the sounds and demands of our smart phones, tablets, computers, radios, and televisions. We have effectively locked out the sights and sounds of the natural world. Today, we can live our whole lives cocooned in an artificial bubble and oblivious to the natural world that envelops us.

The more we become disconnected from the natural world of which we are an integral part, the more we become disoriented and confused about the meaning of our own lives. The more we are connected with nature the more we are likely to reflect positively on ourselves and the more likely we are to have perspective on the state of our lives and the potential that lies therein.

When we are disconnected from the environment we miss the opportunity to be spiritually energized. Hummingbirds awaken us to our spiritual connectivity. They help to keep us spiritually centered.

Yerette provides an opportunity for us to “bathe” in the spiritual warmth of the hummingbird.

God-Like Hummingbirds

Hummingbirds are found only in the Western Hemisphere - the Americas. The indigenous peoples of the Americas treated the hummingbirds with great reverence. To them, the hummingbirds were sacred. To some they represented God, to others they were messengers of God, to some they were messengers of the Great Spirit, to others they were the souls of their dead ancestors, to some they were the sun in disguise, to others they were healers of the soul, to some they were gifts from the Gods, and to others they represented the sun as the giver of life.

Flying Jewels! Living Gems!

Hummingbirds are among the most intensely colourful of life forms on the planet. They are naturally iridescent. In brilliant sunshine, the metallic colours appear jewel-like. They are often called “Flying Jewels” and Living Gems”. Hence the reason hummingbirds are often named after gemstones, precious metals, and the sun.

In the latter part of the 19th and early part of the 20th centuries, vast quantities of hummingbird skins were imported into Europe from the Americas for use in the fashion and millinery industries. Hence, hummingbirds were not only seen as “flying jewels” and “living gems”, they were actually worn as jewelry. This trade came to an end in 1918 when governments were forced to pass legislation to stop the trade. Today hummingbirds are protected by international law and it is now illegal to catch, cage, sell, buy or kill hummingbirds worldwide.

Unbelievable! Incredible! “Magic in the Air!” “Fearsome!”

Hummingbirds, the world’s second largest family of birds, are among the planet’s most mysterious and intriguing creatures. They are truly extraordinary, being the world’s smallest birds, the most intensely iridescent, the birds with the fastest body metabolism and the most combative of all birds. They make magic in the air with wings that can beat in a figure of eight and at rates of up to 200 beats per second. They are the world’s fastest flying birds in relation to body size and can fly in any direction – forwards, backward, sideways, upside-down and vertical. They are the only birds that can hover for a sustained period of time on their own energy. Hummingbirds are magically unique and live at the biological extreme. They have been called majestic warriors and nature’s super heroes.

Hummingbird Medicine

Hummingbirds are believed to give off an energy or vibration that touches humans internally and that can bring internal healing – hummingbird medicine. They are considered to be highly therapeutic and can remove the angst, dross, inner-turbulence and stress that so often characterize our human state in this busy modern world. Thus, they help to hasten healing. Hummingbirds seem to bring inner-calm, inner-peace, a sense of tranquility and serenity and remind many people of the existence of God. It is clear that some people are transported into a deep self-introspective state that takes them into the spiritual realm as they ponder on the creation of such beautiful and majestic warriors. People experience awe and a sense of spiritual connectivity.

Bad Luck, Good Luck

Throughout the Americas, the indigenous peoples believe that to hurt, kill or cage the sacred hummingbird is to invite “bad luck” into your life. In Trinidad and Tobago, the Amerindians were of the same opinion. To be visited by a hummingbird was considered to be “good luck” which can manifest itself through the visit of friends and family, receiving an unexpected gift or money, falling in love or recovering from illness. In contemporary Trinidad and Tobago, such beliefs are alive and well, particularly in our more rural communities.

Utterly captivating! Enchanting!

Hummingbirds continue to captivate and enchant me.

I have been intensely observing and photographing hummingbirds for the last six years and yet they still stop me in my tracks physically, emotionally and spiritually with every new encounter. The closer I get to the hummingbirds the more their beauty is revealed. Their sight and behaviours lift me into a state of awe as I ponder on the magical nature of these beings that live at the biological extreme. Their iridescent hues, speedy flight and extreme aerial agility are stunning to behold. Their rapidly changing physical appearance takes me into the world of the mysterious as I fumble for appropriate words to describe what I am witnessing. The energy expended defies simple explanation. The steady humming sounds of their rapidly beating wings border on the hypnotic. The cacophony of the squeaky chirps of the many species adds a heightened sense of liveliness to their presence. They seem oblivious to gravity, as they appear to hover motionlessly. They appear and disappear in the blink of an eye. I am mesmerized by their daring aerial maneuverability and fearless combativeness.

I see hummingbirds as animated cinders of energy that jet about and illuminate without combusting. Absolutely breathtaking! Spiritually exhilarating! Stunning! Magnificent! Utterly captivating! Enchanting!”

How hard is it to photograph a humming bird?

Hummingbirds are the fastest of all birds and the smallest of all birds. Hence they are the most difficult of birds to photograph. They are considered by many to be the most combative players on earth. In addition, their appearance varies dramatically in relation to light. Perhaps these are the reasons why I took on the challenge of photographing hummingbirds. The encounter has been most fulfilling.

More than anything else, I believe that patience is the most important factor in getting great photos of hummingbirds. You must have a sense of what you are looking for and the patience to handle failures as you keep on trying – sometimes it can take many months and sometimes even years to capture the photo that you may have been dreaming of for a long time.

Patience comes easily if you love what you do. With love come passion and the energy to continuously strive for bettering your best.

Another important factor is to be in rhythm with these busy little creatures – each species behaves differently from the others. You must be able to anticipate their movements and behaviours so that you do not end up with too many empty or out of focus frames.

I have had many incredible moments. One of the most memorable was capturing a pair of mating hummingbirds in the act – mating lasts for only 4 to 5 seconds.