In the past twenty four hours, I have seen fabulous pictures of eagles posted by Ken at rivrvlogr and Cindy Knoke. Each time, I have looked with awe and with sadness… and below, because it is such a sad tale, I am reposting the reason why.
“Are you a storyteller, Thomas Covenant?”
Absently he replied, “I was, once.”
“And you gave it up? Ah, that is as sad a tale in three words as any you might have told me. But a life without a tale is like a sea without salt. How do you live?”
… Unconsciously, he clenched his fist over his ring. “I live.”
“Another?” Foamfollower returned. “In two words, a story sadder than the first. Say no more — with one word you will make me weep.”
― Stephen R. Donaldson
One of the saddest stories I was ever told was about the last tree. I was very small, but it made me cry and I have never forgotten the dying branches of the very last tree in its fenced and guarded little island of grass and the last rabbit that shared its final days.
The story shared the memories of the tree, of how birds and butterflies would come, how children would play… and of the men with axes and poisoned air. The rabbit was too young to remember more than one tree being in the world. More than one rabbit. I don’t remember the words just the pictures that formed as the story was told and how the rabbit curled up and died as the tree withered and became no more than a wooden monument to a once-upon-a-time beauty. It was a lonely story…and a heartbreaking one to tell a child. But it served its purpose. I have never been able to take the life and beauty of nature for granted.
Were I to choose one thing from nature that epitomises for me the grandeur and grace of the world, it would be the great birds. I am lucky, where I live the red kites, once extinct in England and almost extinct throughout Britain, have been reintroduced and now thrive. They are glorious birds with beautifully marked backs and a wingspan wider than I am tall. Every day I see them soaring overhead and every day they take my breath away and remind me of beauty.
Red Kite image: Sue Vincent
I see buzzards regularly, kestrels and hawks… even a never-to-be-forgotten marsh harrier. And once, just once, I saw golden eagles.
On a driving job that took me through the wild heart of the north, I took an impulse turn down a little lane I had passed many times. Why I chose to so so on that day, I will never know, but in the middle of the lane, a pair of golden eagles were dining on a carcass.
I stopped the van and barely dared to breathe. Two golden heads were raised, two pairs of amber eyes considered the intruder… then they rose, unhurried, and flew away. The whole encounter took mere seconds that seemed to last a lifetime… and the memory surely will. A wingspan of nearly eight feet and their mastery of the winds makes them a majestic sight. It was a moment of utter delight, awe and privilege to share the sun with these great and beautiful creatures.
It was, therefore, with a sadness as complete as remembered joy that I read today that the last golden eagle in England is feared dead.
The last golden eagle.
Golden eagle. Image: pinthiscars.com
The news was relayed by birdwatcher Alan Tilmouth, who said, “We’ll wake tomorrow to a country less wild than before, nature one step further from us, one step closer to simply being a shadow of itself.” The eagle had flown above Haweswater for around fifteen years. These birds mate for life and his mate died in 2004… since then he has flown alone. Every spring he has displayed, the aerial mating flight a thing of wonder for those lucky enough to witness it. This spring, he has not reappeared in the Cumbrian skies. It matters little that there are others worldwide. That over the border into Scotland, far up in the north, there are others… a few others….
Even now, the Scottish birds are threatened by an impoverished habitat, by illegal poisoning and the theft of their eggs by collectors.
The last golden eagle.
It need not be so.Man is part of the natural world, whether or not he remembers it. There can be harmony and co-existence between species… the natural balance and the thread of life can weave new stories if we choose.
I feel like the child I once was again, listening to the end of the story and again the tears come. Not just for the loss of this one lonely bird, but for all the children to come who will not look up in wonder at vast wings spread against a blue sky… and for all the creatures and habitats suffering for the need and greed of Man.
Harmony – Mongolian eagle-huntress. Image by Asher Svidensky
Source: The saddest tale
Sue Vincent's Daily Echo 
Sad, indeed.
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Indeed.
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Too true, Sue.
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😦
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Sad, makes me ashamed to be called a human. What next? Rhinos, elephants, lions etc, all because of mankind.
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So many species under threat because of our actions.
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A beautifully written piece. It is quite a sad thing.
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Thank you, Tonya. It is incredibly sad.
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The world is diminished a little more each time I read of something we have either caused or allowed to happen in our indifference.
xxx Hugs Galore xxx
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We ave much to answer for. xxx
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Seems wrong to click ‘Like’ but it’s the message and sentiment I’m liking. We still have golden eagles in Scotland but for how long? There are breeding pairs in the Galloway Hills but their location is a closely guarded secret because of the danger of egg thieves – or worse.
At least our osprey population is growing and this year the pair I watch successfully raised four chicks.
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I remember you mentioning the ospreys, Mary. There are around 400 pairs in Scotland, I believe, with a good deal of effort going into their conservation. Nothing was done about our last eagle as he was ageing and the hope is that one day Scottish eagles might make it this far south. It seems not enough somehow. It should not have been allowed to get this bad in the first place.
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How diminishing! I have to balance it with an episode I just saw of Alaska Vet, where they rescued a bald eagle with a broken wing. And the wonderful resurgence of eagles around the large lake south of Chapel Hill. Perhaps some golden eagles can be brought in to repopulate?
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There are no plans to do so, just a long term hope that some may find their way south one day from Scotland.
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This world is becoming too sad a place…
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We are reaping what we have sown…and other creatures are paying the price.
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Quickly followed by us, I fear…
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Quite probably.
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Reblogged this on Anita Dawes & Jaye Marie.
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Such a sadness, Sue. Humans are strange and terrible beings, aren’t they?
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Children, with toys we can break and discard… but children can grow.
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Yes, there’s always hope. And always those who seek to grow – may they outnumber those who do not.
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Amen to that. I think we will grow whether we like it or not… but cosmic time is vaster than our vision and while we do, our home and our fellow creatures suffer.
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Yes, sadly. In some ways we’ve progressed a great deal in the last century when it comes to conservation – yet at the same time money seems to override such concerns as it always has. Fracking is a sad example of that.
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I wonder what use money will be when we have demolished our home?
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Yes. It’s like the Native American proverb says:
When the last tree is cut down, the last fish eaten and the last stream poisoned, you will realize that you cannot eat money.
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Yep… that about sums it up.
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I geez, so sad. Brought a trickle to my eye. ❤ ❤
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More than a trickle when I heard the news, Tess.
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XX ❤ ❤ ❤
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xx
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Have you read “Wild Wings” by Gill Lewis? You will love it!
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No, I haven’t come across that, Jennie, I’ll look it up.
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It takes place in your neck of the woods. Osprey. Really good.
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I’ll see if I can grab a copy come pay day. Starving writer, you know 😉
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Oh, I do know. That’s why I love our public library. They’ll have it. I’m there all the time. If I buy a book, it speaks volumes for the book. My recent one will be a blog post this week. Enjoy the day!
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My local library is no longer all that good…it used to be and I spent an awful lot of time (and everybody else’s library cards) there. Almost bedtime here 🙂
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Of course it is. Sleep tight!
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With a book 😉
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Sometimes, I don’t like humans very much. 😦
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If it were our species, I think we’d be hoping for a bit of help…
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Sad beautiful tragic.
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It is.
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Very nice read but very sad
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It is. Very sad.
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