Nature is all around us: flowers, trees, deer and so much more. I enjoy the beauty of it all. I wonder how it is that such a tiny flower can be so flawless. I find it interesting that there are three different shaped leaves on the sassafras tree. I see the humor of deer standing stock still in the middle of a field as if they are "hiding" out in the open. On one occasion, though, I witnessed something that was heartbreaking.

I was sitting near a pond at a local city park. I was enjoying myself while watching the squirrels chase each other while running up and down the trees, the muskrat swimming around the pond looking for different material to make its home with, and the Canadian geese flapping their wings while in the pond. There were quite a few geese surrounding the pond, too.

I heard a splashing out in the pond and I noticed that one of the geese was frantically flapping its wings as though it was frightened. Then it appeared to be struggling to stay on top of the water. I wanted to go out into the middle of that pond to help the goose become loose from whatever it was fighting against. Then the goose lost its battle with the unseen opponent.

While the goose was struggling for its life, the other geese surrounding the pond stopped to see what was going on. They stopped walking around and swimming and even stopped honking. They quietly watched as their dead comrade floated across the pond.

I watched this scene for about ten minutes or so and was saddened by what had just happened. It was really interesting to see these geese react the way they did by stopping what they were doing and turn to face their struggling and dying companion. This experience showed me that humans are not the only species to mourn death.

Learn more about this author, Claudia Bedwell.
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