Final straws

Come December
the last maple leaves that cling in desperation
Will be forced to kiss the ground
the squirrels that pranced around in gaiety
will seek shelter in the earth below
water which nows runs free over these rocks
shall soon be frozen in motion
the year that saw the end of a chapter
shall soon come to its dark end

And I will wait for these cold winds to blow
to know which way they go
I will watch another lake freeze, another river struck still,
the trees laid bare,............
the last shards of vulnerability, laid siege to by nature's plan
know no dread, neither any fear
I will be waiting
Come December

Hallowed be thy name

To those familiar,.....

• I have seen Iron Maiden in flesh and blood.
• I have screamed along with Bruce......live!
• I have seen Eddie
• I have chanted along with 15000 people to "Fear of the Dark"

Orca

Last weekend, I spent time with a couple of dolphins, seals, walruses and killer whales. Though I couldn't strike a meaningful conversation with any of them, we were in close proximity as they swam in man-made tanks. I was attracted to the killer whale(Orca) in particular, in fact "killer whale" is a misnomer. They belong to the dolphin family, the largest one at that. An appealing trait is their intelligence which is visible in their group hunting strategies(known to prey on blue whales, hence "killer whale"), their social structure, their methods of communication.
While it was indeed a memorable experience to watch these magnificent creatures swimming around in an environment where it is possible to watch them more closely, there is a price that is paid. A price paid by the orca himself. Under captivity, they are known to suffer from a condition called dorsal fin collapse. The water in the tanks lack sufficient pressure as compared to that of the ocean, which is supposedly required for the dorsal fin's development.
While developed nations have certainly reached a more humane way of treating animals in captivity, the truth will always remain. Captivity, no matter how humane, is unfair. These mute beings have a right to roam free in the wild, and shouldn't have found their way into this blog to be described as beautiful.