The Free Radical

There are gradations of belonging. Usually, when we’re young, we first just want to belong to something. Then, as we mature, we tend to become more selective of the things to which we’d like to belong; we want them to be worthwhile, have integrity, bring fulfilment. And for those who make no such choice, who acquiesce to the mainstream, belonging only blindly to consumerism– they are saddled with many many external things which we collectively refer to as ‘belongings.’

“Only humans could make the concept of belonging so confusingly complicated.”

Toby was looking over my shoulder, behind me, at the sky. I turned around to see what she might be looking at.

Ah, Turkey Vulture! I bet that’s Richard, I thought. Richard is a very large buzzard who kind of keeps to himself. He always comes to visit us solo. This was right on the Mesa; we were just about to leave, to scramble down the Tibetan Trail and get to the river…

…but that indeed appeared to be Richard Sebastian– the buzzard with a Buddha complex, beloved character from my Muse Trilogy. He wanted to connect again… and that made me happy.

Look at that wingspan; he’s huge! He also typically holds his wings out flatter– straight out to the sides, whereas his brethren hold them slightly up in a V.

Yeah, that’s Richard. Other than his opening remark about the human tendency toward overcomplicating things, he didn’t really have much else to say though.

He circled above us about a dozen times, allowing me to grab a few pictures. I then thanked him for dropping by, and very promptly he stopped circling and flew off directly west… across the river valley.

He looks like a single stroke of the Zen Master’s brush across a blank canvas sky.

Yesterday, Hawk called out to us from way up in the sky. It took me a moment to locate her; when I did, I said hello aloud and waved. She called out one more time right then… and then was gone… Pleasant greetings in my neighbourhood…

Today, we came upon her while she was busy on the ground feasting.

First Sitka caught whiff of the kill. Then she heard Hawk’s rustling nearby. Her hackles went up as my curiosity piqued, and then a second later Hawk flew up in front of us, leaving behind her half-eaten kill. Sitka wanted to claim it as her own… but I didn’t let her.

I’ve had to re-evaluate our ongoing association with Coyote recently. A few days ago, Sitka and I both spotted the same canine standing profile at the bend in the road we were travelling. It sure looked more Wolf than Coyote. I begged Sitka not to chase after it, but alas she hadn’t quite learned her lesson yet in that regard.

I followed after her into the bush, as the wolf began yipping. Very shortly it was answered just west of us by a classic wolf howl… so there were two of them. (I know from experience that wolves are often paired up during the summer months when prey is abundant, only packing together when winter hits.) Fortunately, in response to my constant whistling, Sitka returned fairly quickly. I also suspect that she got a good up-close look at the wolf and decided that continuing the chase might not be so prudent after all.

We’re encountering the coyotes and wolves pretty much every day. They come in very close quite often, but I’m less inclined to think that they’re threatening us; I think they’re trying to establish contact and an emergent social order with us. This is from a day or two later:

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(Wolf or coyote yipping incessantly at us)

This individual kept at it for three or four straight minutes. I tried to go out to meet him (as Sitka hung back a bit) but he wouldn’t come into sight– though he was very close. It doesn’t really sound angry or threatening, and we’re certainly all aware of each other now. We shall see how this develops.

It’s pretty exciting, especially since of all the animals, Wolf represents the untamed wild Spirit of Nature more than any other… Although, this guy looks pretty wild too!

Check out the menacing sword coming out of his ass! I keep finding these militant grasshopper-like things… in all sorts of different colours: black, brown, charcoal grey and now green.

I think the green makes him look a lot friendlier…

…much more so than this guy!

No, the green just gives him a certain nobility that I seem to prefer.

Anyway, Nature is the ultimate self-regulating, self-governing, intelligent system. If I have to belong to something, why wouldn’t I want it to be this?