BIRDS AND BULL
A Willy-Wagtail sits
on the verandah ledge here as I write. They are delightful birds and
this one in particular has become quite a part of my life.
My life was going through enormous changes a while back and some of this not enjoyable. The beautiful, stunning environment that I live in was the perfect antidote. On the hardest days though, this little bird would turn up and sit quietly nearby. I decided that she was a she, due to her mothering and nurturing senses.
Another day I was on the verandah talking on the phone and burst out laughing with my friend on the other end. Willy-Wagtail cracked up too, breaking into a great joyful song with me. That was the moment I realised how connected this bird was with me.
Animals sense animal lovers. Arriving at a home of a friend recently I was warned off one particular dog, who could apparently be vicious. Five minutes later, with no effort from me other than a gentle pat on his head, he was lying at my feet, his chin resting on my shoe asleep.
In the news a couple of weeks ago there was an outcry when a young girl, laughing, threw live puppies into a flowing river. Not long before, a woman had been busted throwing a cat into a garbage bin and a boy had been filmed throwing a dog off a bridge. The outcry was justified, definitely. It is heart breaking to see the arrogance of humans in the way they treat other animals. Animals have a right to be here too. It is also their planet.
What prompted me to write on this topic though was reading a news article last week about a woman being gouged by a running bull in Spain. The news was about the woman being hurt, not about the bull. It is not a natural state for any animal, including a bull, to be running down a street, terrified, and being chased and yelled at. Of course it is going to act irrationally. It is scared.
So we, as a society, cry out when puppies are injured or mistreated, and rightly so, but why not when other animals are? This continues to puzzle me, although I was delighted to see that there is a growing movement in Spain to stop this awful practice.
It is not a secret that I don't eat meat and am an animal lover. But having grown up in a totally different world to the one I now live in, I do respect that everyone has the right to live how it feels right for them.
Sure it would be a beautiful world if animals were not killed. But this may be a long way off, if ever. I don't judge someone if they eat meat, plenty of people I love do so.
The thing that saddens me though is the lack of empathy. Most people don't even think about what they are doing. They don't consider the feelings of the animals at all. And in a way, I do understand as the truth is pretty confronting.
For those who would like to know more on this, I strongly recommend the documentary Earthlings. Be warned though, it is very honest, will change your life and takes a lot of courage to sit through. But it is truthful and very informative.
This cottage is one of five homes on a couple of thousand acres. Down this end we enjoy living in a beautiful location as a creek runs by. And a mountain on the property offers views across to the coast.
After years of house-sitting in places with perfect gardens, it is lovely to be where the length of the lawn really doesn't matter. Wild flowers are allowed to grow and horses wander in and eat the grass.
About a week ago I noticed a sound and looked outside to see a colourful rosella poking its head out of a small hole in the outside wall of the house. Since then I've concluded it is nesting there as it comes back a lot while the mate sits on the fence nearby. They fly off during the day, but come back regularly.
There is an abundance of natural life to observe around here. But one of the loveliest things so far happened last week. Hearing a different noise outside I looked out, only to see the back of a huge bull that had wandered into the yard. I'd never seen him before but I was happy for the lawn to be mowed. Spring is here and the grass is growing fast again after all.
A couple of minutes later, I then heard another noise and turned around to find him sticking his head inside the back door. Now, I grew up with cattle and I know that if they are treated well, they can be relatively friendly. But I've never seen a bull do this. I said hello to him so he could hear my voice and wouldn't frightened by then seeing someone.
He hung around so I went to the door. He didn't move initially but when I tried to pat him, he wasn't sure, breathing heavily while making his decision to stay or go. So I sat down in front of him and tried again. With me now at eye level of this enormous creature, he allowed me to pat the side of his face. He wasn't sure and was still a bit tentative. But when I stopped, he didn't go away. So I did it again, which he allowed. He ended up closing his eyes and enjoying it for a minute or so. Then wandered off to eat more grass.
It was about an hour later that I read the article about the woman injured by a bull in Spain and my heart naturally went out to the bull, thinking how gentle the nature of the bull was here once trust was established.
Walking over the paddocks later, I heard the familiar call of Willy-Wagtail. She goes with me wherever I walk and if I don't notice and acknowledge her, she sings out to me. Once I respond, she will then fly ahead to the next fence post and wait. I love it.
When I heard her yesterday, I looked towards the fence only to find her sitting right between the ears of the big bull. If ever there was to be a moment to wish for a camera, that was the one.
I thought how naturally birds do land on cows and horses, knowing without fear that they will be welcome. Yet very few birds land on humans until a relationship is established. Obviously the collective consciousness of birds has instilled a fear in them of people. You can't blame them, after years of duck hunting, chicken farming and the like.
It is becoming warm enough now for the lizards to be out again too. They are getting used to the happy vibes around here. Last summer they were quite timid and would run as soon as they spotted human activity. Yesterday one sunned itself on the verandah, saw me moving about but didn't bother running away as it would have previously. I like lizards a lot. I didn't enjoy being chased once by a three-foot goanna, but other than that, I do like them.
The bull wandered back into the yard again this morning. I carried on with my business out there without either of us bothering each other. It was symbiotic.
Willy-Wagtail knows I have been writing about her. She sings her delightful song as I write this. It amazes me at times when I watch the birds around here, at how a perfect tune of quite decent volume can come out of such a tiny body.
Nature is beautiful. We have so much to learn through the co-habitants of this magnificent planet.
But in the meantime, I have a friend who wants to go walking.
Well, I'll walk. She'll fly.
Thanks for dropping by and sharing your company friends. I hope the birds are singing in your world too.
My life was going through enormous changes a while back and some of this not enjoyable. The beautiful, stunning environment that I live in was the perfect antidote. On the hardest days though, this little bird would turn up and sit quietly nearby. I decided that she was a she, due to her mothering and nurturing senses.
Another day I was on the verandah talking on the phone and burst out laughing with my friend on the other end. Willy-Wagtail cracked up too, breaking into a great joyful song with me. That was the moment I realised how connected this bird was with me.
Animals sense animal lovers. Arriving at a home of a friend recently I was warned off one particular dog, who could apparently be vicious. Five minutes later, with no effort from me other than a gentle pat on his head, he was lying at my feet, his chin resting on my shoe asleep.
In the news a couple of weeks ago there was an outcry when a young girl, laughing, threw live puppies into a flowing river. Not long before, a woman had been busted throwing a cat into a garbage bin and a boy had been filmed throwing a dog off a bridge. The outcry was justified, definitely. It is heart breaking to see the arrogance of humans in the way they treat other animals. Animals have a right to be here too. It is also their planet.
What prompted me to write on this topic though was reading a news article last week about a woman being gouged by a running bull in Spain. The news was about the woman being hurt, not about the bull. It is not a natural state for any animal, including a bull, to be running down a street, terrified, and being chased and yelled at. Of course it is going to act irrationally. It is scared.
So we, as a society, cry out when puppies are injured or mistreated, and rightly so, but why not when other animals are? This continues to puzzle me, although I was delighted to see that there is a growing movement in Spain to stop this awful practice.
It is not a secret that I don't eat meat and am an animal lover. But having grown up in a totally different world to the one I now live in, I do respect that everyone has the right to live how it feels right for them.
Sure it would be a beautiful world if animals were not killed. But this may be a long way off, if ever. I don't judge someone if they eat meat, plenty of people I love do so.
The thing that saddens me though is the lack of empathy. Most people don't even think about what they are doing. They don't consider the feelings of the animals at all. And in a way, I do understand as the truth is pretty confronting.
For those who would like to know more on this, I strongly recommend the documentary Earthlings. Be warned though, it is very honest, will change your life and takes a lot of courage to sit through. But it is truthful and very informative.
This cottage is one of five homes on a couple of thousand acres. Down this end we enjoy living in a beautiful location as a creek runs by. And a mountain on the property offers views across to the coast.
After years of house-sitting in places with perfect gardens, it is lovely to be where the length of the lawn really doesn't matter. Wild flowers are allowed to grow and horses wander in and eat the grass.
About a week ago I noticed a sound and looked outside to see a colourful rosella poking its head out of a small hole in the outside wall of the house. Since then I've concluded it is nesting there as it comes back a lot while the mate sits on the fence nearby. They fly off during the day, but come back regularly.
There is an abundance of natural life to observe around here. But one of the loveliest things so far happened last week. Hearing a different noise outside I looked out, only to see the back of a huge bull that had wandered into the yard. I'd never seen him before but I was happy for the lawn to be mowed. Spring is here and the grass is growing fast again after all.
A couple of minutes later, I then heard another noise and turned around to find him sticking his head inside the back door. Now, I grew up with cattle and I know that if they are treated well, they can be relatively friendly. But I've never seen a bull do this. I said hello to him so he could hear my voice and wouldn't frightened by then seeing someone.
He hung around so I went to the door. He didn't move initially but when I tried to pat him, he wasn't sure, breathing heavily while making his decision to stay or go. So I sat down in front of him and tried again. With me now at eye level of this enormous creature, he allowed me to pat the side of his face. He wasn't sure and was still a bit tentative. But when I stopped, he didn't go away. So I did it again, which he allowed. He ended up closing his eyes and enjoying it for a minute or so. Then wandered off to eat more grass.
It was about an hour later that I read the article about the woman injured by a bull in Spain and my heart naturally went out to the bull, thinking how gentle the nature of the bull was here once trust was established.
Walking over the paddocks later, I heard the familiar call of Willy-Wagtail. She goes with me wherever I walk and if I don't notice and acknowledge her, she sings out to me. Once I respond, she will then fly ahead to the next fence post and wait. I love it.
When I heard her yesterday, I looked towards the fence only to find her sitting right between the ears of the big bull. If ever there was to be a moment to wish for a camera, that was the one.
I thought how naturally birds do land on cows and horses, knowing without fear that they will be welcome. Yet very few birds land on humans until a relationship is established. Obviously the collective consciousness of birds has instilled a fear in them of people. You can't blame them, after years of duck hunting, chicken farming and the like.
It is becoming warm enough now for the lizards to be out again too. They are getting used to the happy vibes around here. Last summer they were quite timid and would run as soon as they spotted human activity. Yesterday one sunned itself on the verandah, saw me moving about but didn't bother running away as it would have previously. I like lizards a lot. I didn't enjoy being chased once by a three-foot goanna, but other than that, I do like them.
The bull wandered back into the yard again this morning. I carried on with my business out there without either of us bothering each other. It was symbiotic.
Willy-Wagtail knows I have been writing about her. She sings her delightful song as I write this. It amazes me at times when I watch the birds around here, at how a perfect tune of quite decent volume can come out of such a tiny body.
Nature is beautiful. We have so much to learn through the co-habitants of this magnificent planet.
But in the meantime, I have a friend who wants to go walking.
Well, I'll walk. She'll fly.
Thanks for dropping by and sharing your company friends. I hope the birds are singing in your world too.
