I was meeting Cassandra for an early breakfast this morning and had an hour to kill beforehand, as all the babies at home had been fed or fed and released.
So, I took myself off down to Lake Parker to see what kind of a sunrise today might bring. It wasn’t too dissimilar from others that I have seen there but it was still refreshing for the senses and I was happy to be there.
When I got there, there was a fisherman at the end of the small pier and he was just casting his line and watching the view. We spoke briefly and I realized he was someone I had seen before. He told me he liked to come down on weekends and see if he can catch his breakfast.
By the time the sun rose above the horizon, he had cycled away and his presence was taken by a fisherman of a different sort; a lovely small blue heron. I had seen him several times before also and although I spoke to him he didn’t reply.
While the guy at the end of the pier didn’t catch anything, this little guy did and repeatedly was pulling something out of the water in his beak. And so while the former may have had to settle for toast when he got home, I suspect the heron’s success meant that he didn’t.
I have included some pics of the morning at the end of this blog and I hope you enjoy!
The thought that sprang to mind for this blog revolved around the two encounters that I had with these fishermen and how in their own way, the death that they caused to their catch was merely the circle of life.
You see, the man on the bicycle was a poor guy. I believe he is unemployed and does some part time jobs here and there. So his fishing had nothing to do with fun.
Neither, obviously, did the heron’s efforts and his ability to catch his breakfast was very much a part of his own life struggle.
Yes, he was an excellent fisherman and his kills had no idea that their day was about to end this way.
But, he was walking in alligator-rich waters, so his presence there did not place him anywhere near the top of the food chain.
Many times I have gone down there and watched the boaters heading off in their high-speed, armchair-seating boats, taking part in some regular competition with other boaters and even just friends or family heading out for a fun day on the lake.
And for all these people, the fun aspect is very real. I don’t doubt it. I do doubt however that the fish they catch, fully buy into the whole fun aspect of such a pastime.
Of course, most people that support this type of blood sport don’t see fish as living, breathing beings of value. And the key words there were “of value”.
When we diminish any living creature to a level less than ourselves, we find it very easy to justify any level of mistreatment or even murder of these creatures.
Any of you familiar with the Predator series of movies will understand that these extra-terrestrial beings came to earth on hunting expeditions. They did it for fun and they didn’t see themselves as being in any way vicious or cruel. Yet that is exactly how humans respond to such behavior when they are suddenly the prey.
No one cheers for the alien creature when he kills, skins, or eats his catch of the day. We vilify him when he seeks to record any part of his kill as a trophy hunt.
Yet, I can’t recall the number of places I have been where I have seen large fish mounted as trophies, heads of deer, moose, or elk on a wall, not to mention a myriad of smaller animals gutted and stuffed and realistic glass eyes staring aimlessly out from a “natural” pose.
When I did meet with Cassandra this morning, she described a bull-fighting event that she had been dragged to in Spain, only to leave petrified in disgust. She described her abhorrence of the cheering crowds and the whole spectacle to where I can’t even shake her words from my head right now.
Blood sports have no place in the world and they never did. But their proponents always describe cultural or animal control function, or even medical research reasons (like the nasty Japanese justify their whaling).
Blood sports exist all around us and while we may try to diminish some as being insignificant (like fishing), killing another creature for any reason other than to provided sustenance to yourself or your family is simply a type of murder.
Some argue that they eat what they catch, thinking that somehow this absolves them of the murder, but it doesn’t. These people have fished or hunted for the fun or the thrill, so if at the end they eat their prey, that still doesn’t negate the evil acts that they have committed.
Does the fact that Jeffrey Dahmer ate his victims absolve him of having killed them in the first place?
Mankind is a super-predator. This is what propelled it to the top of the food chain. Well, that and the extinction of dinosaurs.
But being top of the food chain does not justify our abuse of creatures that are not.
I would say our lack of humanity is startling but unfortunately it is exactly the reality of humanity that is causing the carnage beneath us.
The human race has every ability to evolve to a higher level but we never will. We could elevate our role on this planet to that of being the protectors and keepers of the planet. But we prefer to think of ourselves as the owners.
That is sad, don’t you think?
… just a thought!
