In “Joyas Voladoras,” Brian Doyle takes a unique approach to explains the way humans we live and love and the reasons why they are that way. From a hummingbird, to a tortoise, to a great blue whale, there are so many similarities and contrasts in our world, the comparisons are endless. Our choices, activities, ambition, and heart are all ways in which we define ourselves. Everyone is free to choose how they want to live and that is an important part of each individual’s life. Nevertheless, we must never forget how inestimable life truly is. He uses an extended metaphor and comparisons between the human experience and various species in order to better understand the individual’s life. 

The uniqueness of the hummingbird can be seen as a metaphor for the uniqueness of each individual in our world. Just as hummingbirds were non-existent in the eastern world; theywere originally discovered when civilization travelled across the Atlantic Ocean. Nowhere else in the universe will you find someone that is exactly like you. According to Brian Doyle: “There are more than three hundred species of hummingbirds” (Doyle). By stating this, he is demonstrating that even though we are all called “humans” it does not make us all the same. Human life is inherently complex and Doyle does not shy away from this when comparing the bird to the human. Doyle states that hummingbird’s life are: “Nine times removed from ours” (Doyle), (human life), which makes the reader think about the complexity of human life. Again, the reader continues to see similarities and contrasts that only take a minute to understand. once thinking deeper. 

Doyle also addresses the complexity of hummingbird’s behaviors, which can be compared to talents. He mentions the hummingbird’s flying capabilities: “They can dive at sixty miles an hour” (Doyle). Humans are born with God-given talents that we can use without thinking twice and unlike birds or most other animals, we can learn. No matter what talents people are born with they can still foster them and create more. Humans can think beyond any other animal in the world, especially a hummingbird, they can analyze and make complex decisions because human brains are so powerful. An individual’s heartbeat changes based off its activity and can slow down and speed up at a moment’s notice. Although the hummingbird is a multifarious creature, humans defeat them in that aspect. No matter what, humans will always be the most powerful animal in the universe but we cannot neglect the fact that we are all animals and we do share similarities. 

Brian Doyle can be seen as describes a person dying on the inside from a boring and monotonous life when he compares this to when he talks about the hummingbird’s activity tendencies. If it is not constantly in motion it can die from the cold and an inactive heartbeat. Humans are so used to repetition and schedule that sometimes we just need to take a break, but it cannot be a long one because we do not want our hearts to ever beat too slow. We do not want our heart to stop from inactivity. No day can ever be taken for granted either, according to Doyle we all have: “Two billion heartbeats” (Doyle) before we cease to exist. This number puts the hummingbird’s life into context for the reader. Each person gets to decide how they want to live those “heartbeats.” Everyone is free to choose what they want to do in life, whether it is good or bad. It is completely up to that individual and their own solitary choices. Free will is often referenced alongside religion but it works harmoniously with Brian Doyle’s idea about how we should spend our heartbeats. The idea of making our own decisions is a major part of Doyle’s “heartbeat argument” in his essay “Joyas Voladoras.”

Doyle continues this tone of reasoning by explaining The hummingbird is an extraordinarily ambitious creature the hummingbirds ambition, visiting over a thousand flowers a day. Ambition is something that is world recognized, everyone wants to have ambition and once again each individuals ambition is inherently unique to that person. It does not matter what it is, even if it is not achievable. For example, there is no way that a human could: “Fly more than five hundred miles without pausing to rest” (Doyle). It is not humanly possible; however, a human could design a device (airplane) that could fly this distance without pause. This is an example of using our heartbeats to create something powerful that was originally thought of as impossible. Often in life there are trade-offs, something we give up to pursue something else. It is a necessity and it makes decision making arduous. This is a part of the key metaphor in the essay; how humans we should we spend their heart beats. We can decide to use them all at once, similar to the hummingbird or barely use any and live to two-hundred years like a tortoise. Although it is impossible for a human to live to two-hundred years it is all about the point Doyle is trying to make, do individuals want to make their time on earth memorable or just ordinary? 

Another strategy Brian Doyle uses in his metaphor is pointing to the immediacy of the hummingbird’s death and how precious life truly is. Human life is remarkably precious; Brian Doyle has a way of showing this to the reader in an indirect way. Some lines he speaks of the hummingbird’s great talents but on the contrary. For example, he mentions how the hummingbird can die from a heart attack at any moment due to the speed they live their lives: “…they suffer more heart attacks and aneurysms and ruptures than any other living creature” (Doyle). As humans and hummingbirds, we take the risk every day that we might not make it, although we seldom look at life this way, it is possible that our life could be cut short at any moment. Doyle calls the reader’s attention to this. 

The great blue whale has the largest heart out of any mammal in our modern world, yet they are the most unknown and undocumented species. This proves that no matter how big someone or something’s heart is, we never truly know what they have gone through or what they are going through and only that individual knows how to fill their respective heart correctly. We can try to be there for someone and love someone endlessly but in the end it is up to them to decide how they want their heart to be filled. Blue whales often: “…travels in pairs of two” (Doyle) similar to how humans decide to marry a spouse. The whales rely on each other just like a husband and wife do. They moan and cry together, are constantly with each other, and come together to produce offspring for later generations of great blue whales. 

After Brian Doyle’s “Joyas Voladoras” it is evident that there is an abundance of complex extended metaphors that allow the reader to divulge their own meaning. Hearts play a large role in every species life and while there are many differences in our world there are also many similarities. Never take anything for granted because you never know when you will no longer be here. Doyle’s argument all goes back to the idea of a heart, all mammals have one (at least one) and it beats to provide us with life. There are so many facts that we know about animals and people but what we do not know is what each person or animal has been through or is going through. We must not judge one another because we can only see so far into each other’s heart.  
