Outside it rains today and I find a tear of gratitude, matching it, rolling down my cheek. I imagine that most of us in the world see rain differently these days. I am hoping that it rains in the Northwest Territories and Northern BC here to bring desperately needed relief. I can't bear thinking about the lack of it in so many parts of the world. And the excess of it too. All out of whack.
One thing that sickens me completely about these fires are the animals, the innocent animals (and birds) trapped in the conflagration and I daren't google the numbers, even if there aren't statistics on all these precious creatures who are lost. It really doesn't bear thinking about, but I do. And I find thinking about their terror heart-wrenching.
What absolute evil us humans have wrought on this tiny planet where democracy is worth shyte and theocorporatocracy rules and regulates our bodies and our very existence. And is the ongoing cause of these climate change events disasters.
We're on the edge of a cliff and like many, I no longer feel safe and secure.
Outside today. Our noon cannon on top of the hill facing my window just boomed. The soldiers dress up like soldiers of yore, all red coats and mighty feathery head toppings and the tourists flock and us locals go: ah, lunch, and at times I think of the noon city wide angelus bells that rang out my childhood in Cork.
The Angelus still rang out in Bray when I was shopping there not so long ago.
ReplyDeleteIn 1950s Dublin everyone except me blessed themselves as the bus drove past a church; people seemed to know even when the church was down a side street.
How I longed to be Catholic like all my friends!
They all went to confession, did Irish dancing and wore white dresses and veils when they were seven!
Now I'm an Irish Republican Protestant married to a British Catholic - both lapsed, to put it mildly.
How I longed to be Jewish, YS. We had several in our school and looking back, I realized their parents must have escaped the holocaust. They were excused from catechism and the awful mind-numbing retreats where we were shouted at about hell and keeping ourselves pure by angry priests. I remember telling one my nun teachers I wanted to convert. She told me they were "infidels" and needed to be guided into the love of Christ.
DeleteI am fortunately long lapsed. What drivel.
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Ahh. Those bells we heard regularly throughout the day - I miss them still. And also the fact of the church spires that stuck up from the middle of each city, town or village. You don't see that here. As for those fires - terrifying. God bless the courageous firefighters!
ReplyDeleteThat was me. Nice update on the blog name too!
DeleteYes, there was something about them Molly. A reminder even of the day that was in it. You remember the black bands on the sleeves of those who were grieving? And yes, those incredible firefighters. We have lost 4 in Canada in this hellish season.
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Rain. Precious, life giving rain. Having lived through too many droughts and too many fires I am always glad to see, to hear, to smell it. And like you my heart aches for the birds, the beasts, the insects, the plants lost. Our most recent calamitious fires moved too many further down the road to extinction.
ReplyDeleteBells to mark the day are not a part of my history - though I have read about them with real interest.
It's truly dark times EC and I don't see the load getting lighter for those of us who are hyper aware of the destruction of our planet and the dreadful effects on those less fortunate. Tonight in the Sudanese shelters babies and children are starving to death. I really don't know what will get the attention of those who can change our trajectory.
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Hopefully the rain will be widespread. Some animals here have through evolution adapted to surviving bushfires. But not all have and if the type of fiercely hot fires we've seen in recent times, they can get even the best protection some have. I don't think your animals would have much idea about what to do in a fire. Whatever, it is difficult to think about.
ReplyDeleteReally difficult Andrew, I feel nauseous even doing so and try to focus away from it and then it comes back again. As an aside I would love to know what is going on inside the heads of government officials with all the knowledge of what is actually going down.
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How I hope the rain keeps up, to aid those brave firefighters.
ReplyDeleteMe too Joanne, they are absolutely amazing and brave much like our health care and police who are always there helping out.
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It makes me feel nauseous (not the rain, the rest of it)
ReplyDeleteI know Kylie, those innocents.
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A noon cannon? And bells ringing? Is this a daily thing or some special occasion?
ReplyDeleteI also hope the rain buckets down on the fires where it is needed and eases off or stops where there has been flooding.
Noon cannon is daily River, I love it, gets my attention, divides my day sort of thing. Bells were rung in Ireland for the angelus. Yes, Canada is devastated by these dreadful fires. I can't watch the news as I start to cry.
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If I could I'd send some -- make that all --- of our rain off to Canada and other needy places. We need sun and dry here, the grains are sprouting in the fields, the passageways are impassable because the stand knee deep or more with water and everything is wet and dreary. We have only had a few days without rains since the middle of June. And most days hav given us over 20 mm. Too much and too little ...
ReplyDeleteClimate change is affecting us all Charlotte in different, deadly ways. It must be so dreary for you having constant rain and water, but I dare say it's much better than frightening fires. Greece alone is in dire straits too. I keep thinking of those old posters carried by whack jobs on the streets "The End is Nigh!" and we all need one each now. It certainly feels that way.
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I feel the same way about the fires and the animals, it's simply horrendous. So I was happy that tropical storm Hilary came by even through it washed out my road and made me stuck at home.
ReplyDeleteHere in Nova Scotia we have had 3x normal rainfall. Ground is saturated. Deadly flooding. Hurricane coming. W had wildfires in May that burned many homes, four people dead in subsequent floods. Glad your rain is the nice kind, here it is not.
ReplyDeleteThat is dreadful. I am hoping your weather settles itself but have grave reservations on the cataclismic future of our weather patterns with climate change a reality check for all.
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The Boreal forest must burn to survive. It has always done this. The problem is we *will* live in it, and too close to it. Because it's so one with nature to have your home there. Emma
ReplyDeleteEveryday I’m thankful I’m old and have had a good life in most respects. The world is on a precipice between hateful politics and climate change and I’m afraid we have already gone over the edge. My hope is someday the flora and fauna will have it all to themselves and recuperate and find a natural balanced peace once more. We will be long gone. Mary
ReplyDeleteThe comment above is correct in a limited way, fire has always been a part of the boreal forest, but never on the scale we are witnessing today. Many parts of our northern forests have been converted to monocultures too, with no natural firebreaks. I want to weep when I think of breeding birds returning next spring to find their habitat gone.
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