Decided to move some of my favourite and reflective postings in Fridae here. Here's one about life...
Location - Tampa Florida, my office's car park
Date - Sep 04
I was on my way to lunch with some of my international colleagues (2 from Tonga and 1 from Thailand) and saw 2 very beautiful pink crested pigeon (doves) chasing each other playfully in flight. It was such a beautiful sight. So loving. So touching.The one in front (presumably female) did a playful dive towards a bright red car before she did a steep turn and spearheaded towards the sky. The one behind (presumably the male) followed suit. But alas, the male could not turn steeply enough and crashed onto the roof of the red car.
Next thing I knew, he dropped onto the ground. I ran to him and picked him up. He did not resist. He was motionless. He looked shocked, his eyelids still moving. I turned him over and realised that the impact of the hit had forced his guts out through his rear and there was a pool of blood on the floor (for a small pigeon, that was a helluva lot of blood!).
I knew there was no hope for him. I knew at that moment that even if I were to rush him to the vet hospital he would be a goner. I was helpless. I could only placed him upright by the foot of a bush and hope his end would be fast. I proceeded to lunch. I ate with a heavy heart thinking of what had happened.
When I returned, he had died. The body had stiffened. His eyes were closed and his legs had straightened. His rigid body lied on its side. I felt sad. I dug a hole by the foot of the tree, said a simple prayer (Buddhist, but that is immaterial to the dove I guess) and gave him a proper burial. That was the most basic thing I could do for my fellow living being.
My Tongan friends laughed at me and said that it was only a bird and that I should not give any hue to it and let nature take it's course (ants, flies, etc). My Thai friend, being a Buddhist too, understood where I was coming from. To me, it may be only a bird, but the life that was lost was no different from any other life I know and I respect it. I felt sad. I could not save him. I know his time was up. The least I could do was to give him a proper burial. Death comes when ones' time is up. It is not up to us to decide when it should come. Life is fragile and unpredictable. We have to be aware what we do while we are alive, do good, do not hurt people, live it productively. So that when we are taken away from this world, we will leave it without worries.
Live each day as if it is the last.
Location - Tampa Florida, my office's car park
Date - Sep 04
I was on my way to lunch with some of my international colleagues (2 from Tonga and 1 from Thailand) and saw 2 very beautiful pink crested pigeon (doves) chasing each other playfully in flight. It was such a beautiful sight. So loving. So touching.The one in front (presumably female) did a playful dive towards a bright red car before she did a steep turn and spearheaded towards the sky. The one behind (presumably the male) followed suit. But alas, the male could not turn steeply enough and crashed onto the roof of the red car.
Next thing I knew, he dropped onto the ground. I ran to him and picked him up. He did not resist. He was motionless. He looked shocked, his eyelids still moving. I turned him over and realised that the impact of the hit had forced his guts out through his rear and there was a pool of blood on the floor (for a small pigeon, that was a helluva lot of blood!).
I knew there was no hope for him. I knew at that moment that even if I were to rush him to the vet hospital he would be a goner. I was helpless. I could only placed him upright by the foot of a bush and hope his end would be fast. I proceeded to lunch. I ate with a heavy heart thinking of what had happened.
When I returned, he had died. The body had stiffened. His eyes were closed and his legs had straightened. His rigid body lied on its side. I felt sad. I dug a hole by the foot of the tree, said a simple prayer (Buddhist, but that is immaterial to the dove I guess) and gave him a proper burial. That was the most basic thing I could do for my fellow living being.
My Tongan friends laughed at me and said that it was only a bird and that I should not give any hue to it and let nature take it's course (ants, flies, etc). My Thai friend, being a Buddhist too, understood where I was coming from. To me, it may be only a bird, but the life that was lost was no different from any other life I know and I respect it. I felt sad. I could not save him. I know his time was up. The least I could do was to give him a proper burial. Death comes when ones' time is up. It is not up to us to decide when it should come. Life is fragile and unpredictable. We have to be aware what we do while we are alive, do good, do not hurt people, live it productively. So that when we are taken away from this world, we will leave it without worries.
Live each day as if it is the last.
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