Flying free: The evolving nature of nursing practice guided by the theory of health as expanding consciousness

There is an oft-cited parable about a wise elder who seemed to know every move of the universe before it even happened. There was no question to which the wise elder did not have the answer. Children and adults sat for hours listening to the wise elder's teaching. One day a skeptic, who was determined to trick the wise elder and outshine her cleverness, caught a small bird. The skeptic went to the wise elder with the tiny bird cupped in one hand behind his back. He addressed the wise elder saying, "Tell me if you can, is the bird behind my back alive or dead?"-thinking that if the elder said, "dead" he would set the bird free to flutter off into the sky and thus prove the wise elder wrong. And if the elder said, "alive" he would crush its breath away with the strength of his hand, again proving her wrong. Hearing his question and taking a moment to ponder the situation, the wise elder leaned forward, kindly smiled, and said, "The answer is in your hands.".