Blogs

        I saw something not too long ago that I took to be good sign, it was a peregrine falcon eating a pigeon.  It wasn't so good for the pigeon, but the falcon is an endangered species whereas pigeons are plentiful.  It is a sign of survival against the odds, of resistance to extinction, a sign of hope. 

No doubt the word hope will be overused this election season, but that doesn't make it any less important.  Hope can put a spring in your step, allow you to hold your head up high, and give you the courage to overcome life's obstacles.  I myself use hope to get through the workday so I don't have a nervous breakdown or park myself on the railroad tracks that go by the Sash Mill.  Even in Santa Cruz that would be a little too weird.

Back to the falcon.  I've seen falcons before but never that close.  The falcon I saw was on the bike path next to the San Lorenzo River between the Soquel Ave. and Laurel St. bridges.  It was a beautiful, sleek creature with piercing eyes and a sharp, downward beak as it stood victoriously over its kill.  Another bystander said that the falcon knocked the pigeon out of the air, jumped on top of it, and quickly dispatched it with a slice of its beak.  After munching on its prey for a couple of minutes, it flew the carcass up to top of a building to keep it away from us gathering humans. 

A few years ago I saw another falcon snatch a dove right out of the air with its talons leaving a puff of little gray featheres.  Again, not good for the prey, especially a dove which is the bird of peace, but the endangered falcon needed its own piece.  The lesson to be learned from this striving for survival is that we need to turn on our own predator instinct, not in a destructive way, but in a way that makes us keen and wary.  A little paranoia can be a good thing when confronted by people who want your time, your money, or your vote.