Hey, thanks for being a part of the conversation. This is Forest Stories.
I am the Poet in the Forest, a children's series that I pinned
out in the nineteen nineties. Now, none of it would be possible if
it wasn't for this forest right here in South Charlotte, North Carolina. I
talk about it so much that I thought maybe it's time that you get to
know what has inspired me for thirty years. Thanks for being a part of
the conversation. Welcome back to the forest. Presently watching a redtail hawk about
twenty five maybe thirty feet off the ground, up on a branch. We
startled him out here on this path in this forest. He was in the
midst of having breakfast, and when we came up to him, he was
on the ground with his prey beneath his claws. Now he's up in the
tree, so we very patiently wait for the hawk to make his move back
down to the prey. He absolutely notices me. His bright red tail is
stunning, and his look is like I see you every day human. You're
too big to be by prey, but together we can share this universe.
And so as he stands there and he looks so there like a that he's
in flight, that bright tail. He's now flown probably about maybe five hundred
feet away from me. But that flight is so smooth. You know.
That's one of the things that I had to learn how to deal with while
living in this forest. For as long as we have the wildlife and how
the wildlife lives, Yes, it hurts my heart to see how they will
swoop down and grab a lizard, to a squirrel, to a rabbit.
And you sit there and you know you have that pain in your soul,
but you have to understand that they too must eat, and so learning how
to live with the wildlife in this forest, even the turtles with the way
that they survive. And I've never killed a copperhead snake or even a black
snake. I always allow them to have the space. These are animals that,
really, you know, the human is basically in the way, and
in this forest, my goal has always been to let the wild have their
way, and that includes the vines. Now, if I feel that the
vines on the trees are starting to choke the life from a tree, then
I'll do something about it. I'll thin things out just a bit. Pruning
is so important. But being in the presence of the wild, you got
to kind of have a tough heart. And even though emotionally you are connected
to every living thing and you are to respect all living things, you still
have to be able to say, way to go, mister hawk. Your
flight is beautiful. I hope you enjoy your breakfast. Hey, thanks for
being a part of the conversation.