Headstall's Reflections - 59. Chapter 59 Roadkill

Very nice Poem. I love the Images it invoke's

Some encounters with wild animals are unavoidable when you're driving - my brother had a collision with a deer once. But, yes, like you, I mourn roadkill - fox, hedgehog, badger, pheasant ...  

6 minutes ago, Albert1434 said:

Very nice Poem. I love the Images it invoke's

Thanks, Albert... I've glimpsed a fox in that area before... such a shame    

2 minutes ago, northie said:

Some encounters with wild animals are unavoidable when you're driving - my brother had a collision with a deer once. But, yes, like you, I mourn roadkill - fox, hedgehog, badger, pheasant ...  

So true. It's the world we live in, but the animals, with all their natural defenses, are not equipped to deal with such danger. I've hit a deer, although it lived, and a family of raccoons too... I still feel remorse at that... thanks for commenting, northie  

I hate scenes like this--there were many of them in the area where I grew up--usually a skunk, but not always...and even those deserve a better end than this.  Senseless all 'round, but that's what happens when Man is involved.  Some people are responsible in their hunting, using what they kill, others do it for sport, or even a children's cruel prank...I see our role as being stewards of the Earth, and we should leave it better than we found it, with as little impact as we can manage, and that includes hunting.

Twice in my life, I've had a cat disappear to meet such a possible fate; the first was a Siamese I had as a teen, had her since she was born and she would come running if I whistled like you would for a dog.  At that time, we occasionally let our cats out to roam the yard since we were in the country, and one day she never came back, and ads turned up nothing, nor did walking our lanes and asking neighbors.  The second was in 2005 when Genghis vanished one night from my house--I'd learned not to let cats outside without a leash by then...I lput ads, flyers and rewards, but got only a few calls.  One was from someone three blocks away on the other side of a major street, saying a cat was lying in his yard, run over...but no one was home when I got there, and there was no body...so I don't know if it was Genghis or not.  I'll keep my dream that he was stolen since that meant someone must have wanted him--he did look valuable...He is the front cat in my avatar, along with his sister Bortai who I lost two years ago yesterday.

 it is such a shame

I think this is common in rural areas ... more and faster cars. Always in a hurry. Typically we see skunks, opposums and squirrels. Rarely fowl of some plummage. Interestingly, cars stop for geese and ducks crossing the road.

Your words bring some sense of dignity to these unsung souls.

35 minutes ago, ColumbusGuy said:

I hate scenes like this--there were many of them in the area where I grew up--usually a skunk, but not always...and even those deserve a better end than this.  Senseless all 'round, but that's what happens when Man is involved.  Some people are responsible in their hunting, using what they kill, others do it for sport, or even a children's cruel prank...I see our role as being stewards of the Earth, and we should leave it better than we found it, with as little impact as we can manage, and that includes hunting.

Twice in my life, I've had a cat disappear to meet such a possible fate; the first was a Siamese I had as a teen, had her since she was born and she would come running if I whistled like you would for a dog.  At that time, we occasionally let our cats out to roam the yard since we were in the country, and one day she never came back, and ads turned up nothing, nor did walking our lanes and asking neighbors.  The second was in 2005 when Genghis vanished one night from my house--I'd learned not to let cats outside without a leash by then...I lput ads, flyers and rewards, but got only a few calls.  One was from someone three blocks away on the other side of a major street, saying a cat was lying in his yard, run over...but no one was home when I got there, and there was no body...so I don't know if it was Genghis or not.  I'll keep my dream that he was stolen since that meant someone must have wanted him--he did look valuable...He is the front cat in my avatar, along with his sister Bortai who I lost two years ago yesterday.

 

I understand that accidents happen, but I can help but get angry at the speed some people use on our roads, especially on the weekend. They're in such a hurry to get somewhere... I remember being that way too when I was young, and I'm not condemning... I've learned speed kills more than people, and it pains me to see so many flattened corpses on my rides and walks. There is no dignity in such an end, and these animals often have offspring who need them to survive. Animals loose in the city are on borrowed time. I hope too, Genghis found a new home, and didn't meet that abrupt and undignified end. You're right. We do have a responsibility for our actions... some, though, don't feel that at all... thanks, buddy  xoxo

22 minutes ago, Bucket1 said:

 it is such a shame

Yes, it is, B. It's a common but sad sight. When I was first coming upon the scene I was struck by the beauty of the vultures, but then.... Thanks for leaving a comment, my friend  xoxo

17 minutes ago, dughlas said:

I think this is common in rural areas ... more and faster cars. Always in a hurry. Typically we see skunks, opposums and squirrels. Rarely fowl of some plummage. Interestingly, cars stop for geese and ducks crossing the road.

Your words bring some sense of dignity to these unsung souls.

Yeah, very common. That's true... I've actually never come across a dead goose. Just a blip in my day, but I won't forget the reminder it gave me. Thanks, Buddy  xoxo

Last week a man literally got out of his car to stop other drivers so a duck and her babies could safely cross a very busy street. It was nice to see, but the honking from other drivers...

33 minutes ago, Defiance19 said:

Last week a man literally got out of his car to stop other drivers so a duck and her babies could safely cross a very busy street. It was nice to see, but the honking from other drivers...

Yeah, I've done much the same. It's bad enough on a country road with only a few cars  . I did that... stopped traffic when I was on my bike... three summers ago, I think... and I got honked and yelled at because they had to stop for one stupid minute while I picked up a turtle and put him in a ditch... I was lucky no one ran over my bike  . I've seen others do it for geese and ducks too... never bothered me, and yeah, it was nice to see. Thanks, Def  

7 minutes ago, Valkyrie said:

This is a beautiful tribute and sad commentary.  And people definitely need to slow down, although sometimes it's unavoidable - like that raccoon I hit in June.  It ran right under my tires and there was no way to avoid it.  It's heartbreaking to me every time it happens.  

Thanks, Val. Yeah, it can't be helped sometimes, but I've seen and known drivers who would never stop for a small animal... no big deal, right? I never want to be that callous. It was a sad sight today... it may have been the fox I spotted a couple of months ago in that same area... they are beautiful creatures. It's a terrible way to die, so my poem was a prayer for its passing...  

It always makes me sad to see too.  I know it's hard to avoid sometimes, but some of it could be prevented by slowing down and being aware that wild animals share our world.  

(I won't make comment on birds that literally fly into my vehicle when they have an entire sky) 

2 minutes ago, LitLover said:

It always makes me sad to see too.  I know it's hard to avoid sometimes, but some of it could be prevented by slowing down and being aware that wild animals share our world.  

 

(I won't make comment on birds that literally fly into my vehicle when they have an entire sky) 

Yeah, some of it could. There is an honor to death in nature... nothing is wasted... other animals survive... the earth is replenished. It is the way it is supposed to occur... a flattened corpse on pavement, killed by something unnatural, feels so wrong. LOL to the birds... he he... our house windows aren't safe either... thanks, my friend   xoxo

beautifully written in honor of an untimely death. 

46 minutes ago, mogwhy said:

beautifully written in honor of an untimely death. 

Thanks, moggy. A natural death is honorable... one manufactured by a technological machine is sad... it happens thousands of times a day, and while our reality, it's not what nature intended. Yeah, untimely and unfair... thanks for commenting...  

Thank you for writing this. You tell us of a shame and a hurt in nature which at 100 kmh cannot bear reflection. But walking and biking let us see the damage wrought on the earth, and on ourselves. 

13 minutes ago, Parker Owens said:

Thank you for writing this. You tell us of a shame and a hurt in nature which at 100 kmh cannot bear reflection. But walking and biking let us see the damage wrought on the earth, and on ourselves. 

Hey, Parker. It's a scene repeated far too often. We impose our will upon a world with no regard to the impact or the cost. Life is about so many things... why can't reducing our footprint and appreciating we are not the only children of the earth be a part of our goals. A pipe dream, I suppose... thanks for your thoughtful and well-expressed comment, my friend  

 (Well done...)

6 minutes ago, Lux Apollo said:

 (Well done...)

Thanks, Lux... appreciate the comment