Patric Peake

Blink in the Eye of the Great Blue Heron Patric Peake

At twelve-years-old, I gave up my search to meet God in church and went fishing instead. Crouching at a favorite creek, I turned to meet the eye of a Great Blue Heron staring at me from feet away. I felt a huge, sacred presence holding us in a timeless moment. When the bird finally departed, I was left with one question: "Who am I," a question I pursued for the next forty-plus years as an educator, finding bits of the answer in the transformational moments with the students with whom I was honored to work, especially the ones labeled "at risk." Now, I fish for hearts. A Blink in the Eye of the Great Blue Heron chronicles not only my own self-discoveries in this lifelong quest, but the remarkable awakenings of my students to something greater inside themselves. Over thirty stories about students and family invite the reader to find a deeper connection with their own heart. All have originated as inspirational, prize-winning speeches. Each story reveals a bit more of the beauty and the love within us, despite the outer circumstances. This is a book about our spiritual essence, about that deep loving that brings meaning and value to our lives in these times when it's easy to forget our true nature.