

In “Joyas Volardores” by Brian Doyle, the author compares a joyas volardores, a hummingbird, a minuscule creature that spends its whole life whirring and zooming from flower to flower without an off switch, to the most colossal of all animals, the blue whale. The hummingbird is an independent worker with one job, to collect nectar. “If they are not soon warmed, if they do not soon find that which is sweet, their hearts grow cold” (Doyle 95).  Flying and flowers are the two things that the hummingbird desires most, they must find the sweet taste of nectar or else they will die. The blue whale on the other hand spends its whole life with its pair, exploring the deep blue sea on cruise control. “The animals with the largest hearts in the world generally travel in pairs” (Doyle 96). Humans can relate to both these creatures although they live totally unrelated lives. By looking at animal hearts, we can see a chamber of emotions, which most people do not see; and this is significant because there is so much held in our hearts during our lifetimes. All living things are connected through a heart, but, separated through the way we personally experience emotions.

Simply put, hearts are symbols of love; all people have different sized hearts.  Our lives consist of many different relationships that effect our daily lives. However, no matter how big or small our hearts are at some point we have broken down and felt the pain of a change of dynamic in a relationship. “…the shatter of glass in the road, the words I have something to tell you” (Doyle 96). This is how we know love is not the only emotion we feel in our hearts. Memories and experiences play a major role in our emotions and can cause us to change our mood in an instant. These few examples of what seem to be such minute things can cause a soul a lifetime of pain. Memories do not always bring back pain, they can also bring fear and anger that can leaves us torn and scarred in ways we never thought were imaginable. Other memories like the sound of ripping wrapping paper on Christmas morning leave us with joyful thoughts that we wish we could relive every day. The endless circle of emotions begins when we realize those memories cannot be relived. No matter what someone has been through we all have memories that we cherish and keep with us forever. These are the memories that shape us into the people we are.  

“Strong” people can be people that hide their emotions, living their lives hiding their pain and sorrow inside the walls of their hearts. On the other side of the spectrum lies “sensitive” people that wear their hearts on their sleeves. These are the people that are there to cry with you when you are down and help you back up. “We open windows to each but we live alone in the house of the heart” (Doyle 96). No matter how many people surround us with love and support, at the end of the day we are alone. No one is capable of truly feeling what we are feeling inside; we all experience pain differently. The only thing we can hold on to lies incrusted inside the four chambers of our hearts that keep us alive. 

All things that are living have a heart that connect us to our deeper emotions. We are connected to animals by our hearts and personalities, however, how we use them is up to us. Doyle talks about the choices we as humans have when deciding how we wish to live the rest of our days. “you can spend them slowly, like a tortoise and live to be 200 or you can spend them fast like the hummingbird, and live to be 2” (Doyle 95). Personalities are a trait that all humans have, however it is our choice of how we want our personalities to be portrayed. “The price of their ambition is a life closer to death; they suffer more heart attacks and aneurysms and ruptures than any other living creature” (Doyle, 95). Like the hummingbird, we as humans live on the edge. Everyone has regrets, however nobody wants to look back on their life and wish they had done it differently. Personalities like the hummingbird consist of people always on the go. Always onto the next thing and never giving themselves a second to sit down and smell the roses. There is nothing wrong with this lifestyle, nonetheless, it is only made for certain people. Others can connect with the blue whale, living their life one day at a time, letting life take them into the wind like a feather not knowing where they will land. However, for most, the scariest part is how lonely life can be. No matter which personality you acquire at the end of the day we are alone. People try to hide the pain of the consciousness of this insecurity by surrounding themselves with friends and family. The heart is a unique organ that we all have in common, but, because it is unique to everyone, people can never truly feel someone else’s emotions.

All living things are connected through a heart, but, separated through the way we personally experience emotions. The heart is a puzzle piece that we spend our entire lives trying to solve, however it is not until our days come to an end that we realize how much we truly enjoyed certain experiences.  