[lit-ideas] I think I'll come back as a squirrel next time
- From: Andy Amago <aamago@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2004 09:11:29 -0400 (GMT-04:00)
All summer there is a squirrel who has been getting ready for the winter. I
sit here and watch him jump from the ground into the low hanging branches of
the oak tree to get acorns. (I see him from the patio door next to my
computer.) Or cavort through the tops of the trees, probably over 50-60 feet
up, maybe more. I just noticed that he has dug dozens, literally dozens, of
holes throughout the entire back yard. I'll bet if I stopped mowing I'd have
an oak forest back there. As it is, over the years I've transplanted six oaks
that grew from acorns in sheltered places. Two are now over 20 feet, one is
over 10 feet, three that are stunted from too much shade, a maple I moved last
year that is hanging in at 2 feet, and one oak that died this summer. The last
one might have been too young, about six inches when I moved it. The oaks are
all courtesy of this squirrel who forgot where he put his dinner. I also have
to clean up the mess he made of the torn leaves. I love it
.
There has to be a principle of animal-initiated human/animal cohabitation.
This squirrel, for example. Why are my trees so much more enticing than the
trees in the woods? Or the groundhogs who prefer real estate ventures under my
rhodos instead of in the woods. In fairness though, there is a huge groundhog
condominium in the woods on my property line that's been there for years. Or,
my personal favorite, the birds who prefer my (now covered) drainpipes and
trees against the house instead of the trees in the woods. Instead of running
from people, the animals adapt around us.
And with that, I gotta make like a squirrel and earn my dinner.
Andy Amago
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