The Clapham Eagle
If you fly on the wings of the knowledge eagle, you will learn many things.
The largest eagle in the world is the white-tailed eagle with a wingspan (which is how we’re measuring “large”) of up to 220cm. They are large enough to hunt foxes as prey but are nowhere near large enough to carry a human being. The Clapham eagle (or knowledge eagle as it is sometimes known) is, fortunately, a much larger beast, large enough to lift us high above the city streets to where our ambitions can fly free. Eagles are known for their courage – white-tailed eagles have been seen to attempt to catch porpoises larger than themselves – for their commitment – with the white-tailed eagle being found all across Eurasia from the tundra of Siberia to the southern coast of the Caspian Sea and from Hokkaido in Japan to the west coast of Iceland – and for their confidence – the skill with which they pluck fish from moving water beneath them is breath-taking.
Our knowledge eagle is an inspiration, an admonishment, and a help in time of trouble.
Inspiration: The eagle soars high above us, free to go where it will, unfettered by the constraints that we find on the ground. We look to a future in which we will have choices about our lifestyle, choices about the work we do, choices in the way we want to shape the world.
Admonishment: The great beats of the eagle’s wings have lifted it off the ground into the sky: it may appear to soar effortlessly now, but we know the effort that has taken such a huge creature to get up there. So we are reminded to work hard: simple physics reminds us that you don’t get to fly without an investment of energy. We are also able to look up at the eagle and to reflect that there is always more space up there, always more to learn, always more knowledge to acquire.
Help: We don’t have to do all this ourselves – we can fly on the wings of the knowledge eagle: it is large enough to lift and carry us. The more we learn, the more our existing learning helps us learn more; the harder we work, the better we get at working, the more effective our time becomes. The Clapham eagle is there (in the form of staff and fellow students) to help us when things are hard, to listen, to advise, to support.
