This Man Turned His Life Around by Mastering Falconry | National Geographic

Falconry is the oldest land sport known to man. Before you had any gun, you use the bird. [Music] People get into it for different reasons. Some people love to hunt. I love the fact that it's an animal; then I get to bond with this beautiful thing.

My name is Rodney Stocks. Everyone almost needs the bird man. I grew up in Southeast Washington, DC. I was selling drugs for maybe 15 years before I got caught, and I ended up going to jail for a short period of time, which really was the best thing that ever could have happened to me.

At that time, buddy, the mindset that I had before the Raptors actually came in was I didn't care about people, didn't care about your life, didn't care about my own life. Actually, eventually, you wake up and realize that you're practicing insanity—you're doing the same thing over and over, the exact same way, and you're looking for a different result.

I first started working with birds when I first started working with Earth Conservation Corps' Raptors. I needed a job; I needed some sort of pace to show because I got an apartment. You don't get that with selling drugs. It wasn't an overnight thing, not by a long shot.

However, as you kept going, you started realizing the more joy that you had was when you were in the middle of the woods, and the birds were flying. XP But everything else was destruction and death and negativity. The first bird that I have to fly that came back to me was a Harris Hawk. Her name was Harry.

I let the bird go, and she flew a good 40-50 yards away from me. I put my arm out, and maybe seven seconds later, [Music] the tears were just running, and I was so happy. It was the greatest feeling in the world. I had no idea what it was I was even looking for when I ended up finding it.

From that day on, I can take that bird and go anywhere. We can be in a crowd of 10,000 people, and as soon as that bird sees me, here she comes. That was the highest highs you could ever have! That was my fix. That animal didn't care if I was black or white, rich or poor, dirty or clean. All that animal cared about was did I care about it? Did I love it? Yes, Edie, that's all that matters.

Whatever you want, since you can be making money, you can be doing what—I'm not going to do with it—you can have ten million dollars. I got a bird. You want to trade me your money? So, I had this relationship that I had with my bird.

I'll watch your money. Life outside of being here is just trying to make people happy. I go to schools, hospitals, birthday parties, just community outreach. My thing is to encourage, educate, and excite. You guys know what she loves.

I run a program called Look Up, where we go out and you just look up. I didn't know we had all of this because we never look. [Music] If I love someone, I don't let them go just because they're gone. I got this bird named after my mother.

I throw this bird up; my mother's Whitney, walking, flying over me, watching me like she would have normally been doing. Who can ask for anything more than that? You. [Music]