Blackbird singing in the dead of night.

Take these broken wings and learn to fly.

-McCartney

I list the Beatles as one of my favorites in my profile. The White Album is one of my favorites of theirs. The words above are from a song on that album called Blackbird. The entire song is an allegory perfect in form. As the group was politically active at times, many writers have speculated that Blackbird refers to the black peoples, and the broken wings symbolize the handicap of discrimination.

It seems to me that all people have some broken wings in their lives. Some broken wings are obvious to others, such as quadriplegics, or blindness. People that learn to function with such roadblocks in life are often praised for their courage for learning to fly.

Some have broken wings that are not so easily observed merely by sight. Sometimes these wings are invisible to all but the most observant. Sometimes these wings are even invisible to self.

Sometimes the difference in surrender, and triumph is not a matter of heroics. Just a matter of emphasis, and focus. The focus can be on the black bird with the broken wings, or the dead of night. Paul offers the solution in the second line however. He doesn't say to get the wings fixed or replaced. Nor does he ignore the wings existence.

May I remember each day to learn to fly.

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She made some surveys that really made me think about myself.