 Ashton, Wisconsin Chiree, chiree, chiree a killdeer’s warning pierces the crisp morning air. With a hop and scuttle she moves sideways from our approach. We step onto mottled, ashen-yellow, and grey pavement, the color of her body. She drags an extended wing behind her. “Look,” I whisper to my friend Wayne. “Is she injured?”
“No, she’s okay. She’s pretending to be hurt. Her nest is nearby. Let’s take a look.” We walk to the nest while the killdeer continues her charade. Unprotected on the pavement, the nest includes several blades of withered, sun-bleached grass with a few pebbles and cracked eggshells to keep the baby birds together. Wayne turns to me. “She wants to distract us from her nest. Let’s oblige.” Albuquerque, New Mexico He limps through the narrow isle of the dining car favoring his left leg. The train sways to the right and delivers him sideways into the cracked, red vinyl seat across from me. “How you doing?” I greet my tablemate. “Not well. I’m going to Kansas to bury my mother.” “Oh, I’m sorry for your loss…” “Thank you. My problem was finding someone to care for my cats while I’m away.” “Was her death unexpected?” He runs his fingers through thin grey hair. “Mom lived alone since the divorce. I moved to Arizona years ago. Just last week I had to take them to the vet. They’re much better now. It’s a big job to care for cats when you live alone.” “Did you see your mother often?” “I used to drive sixteen hours to Kansas without a rest until I sideswiped a guardrail. Now I take the train. My brother is looking in on the cats while I’m gone.” “Will your family be at the funeral?” He leans back. “Mom didn’t want any special arrangements. She didn’t like to fuss. Raindrop is the oldest, then Fluffy, Tiger, and Felix. I miss them already. It’s hard to be away from them when you live alone.” If this essay is meaningful, please like or tweet below or leave a comment. Thank you for your interest and possible action you may take. Richard Wilberg, MS, PLCC, ACC Coach for Personal Fulfillment and Career Success
12 Comments
Richard
2/18/2018 05:29:40 pm
Mary,
Steve Sturm
2/22/2018 02:41:58 pm
As always, great perspective Richard! You always challenge us to see things differently. Thank you for awakening our minds to new insights and ways of thinking.
Richard
2/22/2018 04:05:08 pm
Steve,
Francie Corry
2/23/2018 12:37:59 pm
What I felt reading this was a sense of compassion. Both the killdeer and the man who lost his mother are acting under their natural instincts. The bird uses its ‘injury’ as a defense mechanism, just as the man uses distraction as a defense mechanism to protect himself from his vulnerability. The story of the bird first shows me how similar we are to nature. We are part of nature, not separate from it at all, really. Just in our own minds. It gives me compassion for this man to view him without judgment, just doing what nature does.
Richard
2/23/2018 06:43:54 pm
Francie,
Linda Brathwaite
2/24/2018 06:07:05 am
Richard,
Richard Wilberg
2/26/2018 10:27:54 am
Wow, Linda,
Diane Smith
2/24/2018 08:03:31 am
Richard,
Richard
2/26/2018 10:30:41 am
Diane,
Jody
3/13/2018 06:26:21 am
Poignant stories. For me, in each the true need of the bird/person goes unaddressed. Has the bird's nest fallen to a state of being unprotected? Did she put it there? As a reader I am distracted by her concern - which is protecting that nest. It is the often state of helplessness I feel when nature has a problem I wish I could solve. I identify with these two friends solution of leaving her to it. And for me, a professional counselor for the grieving, I would say the man's focus on his cats is not denial of his grief for his mother, but his main concern and it would be worth letting him discuss it. It would help him to ease his anxiety - whether for them or his upcoming experience at his mother's.
Richard
3/13/2018 08:24:41 am
Jody, Indeed, the man on the train was trying to tell his story, the real story of his pain, but for the pain and time available, he could not get to the issue. With time and empathy the man might heal, even with the distractions which surround us. Thank you for your important perspective! Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
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About the Author
I write personal essays, creative non-fiction, flash fiction, and self-development articles from my home in Madison, Wisconsin.
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