This is a love story....Happy Valentine's Day 2021
She came to the island in the fall. There were less people around as the stormy winter weather approached. I heard her calling in the woods...that long, sometimes mournful song of a wolf, testing the region for others. I love the sound of the wolves, it is such a connection to all that is wild and free the way they like to be. There is something timeless and infinite to it, seeming to stretch out into the cosmos.
At first I just listened and learned but after a few times of hearing her call, I tried to call back. Unsure of my place in it all, I just wanted to let her know I was a friend and nearby. I'm sure she knew where and what I was. I tried but didn't have the ability to resonate the way she did.
Surprisingly, she called back, so I responded, trying my best to imitate her call. Each time, she would change it, compelling me to try another tone. In this way, she was teaching me. Back and forth we sang, until at one point we were just joyfully singing to the sky together.
We did this fairly regularly for the two years she stayed here. She literally taught me how to sing.
Song, to Indigenous Peoples, is a sacred thing which one owns and can give to others. Songs are passed down through families and tribes and convey great meaning and history.
She and I would sing together for a half hour or more, time melted away and only when we became tired or I would become hoarse, would we stop. She would be in the forest nearby during our singing and often she would pass by me on the beach, stopping only occasionally to check me out. She had her life to live and didn't seem that concerned about me although there were no other wolves or humans around. The deer, raccoons, mice, shellfish and all the life, smells, sounds and whatever the ocean washed in kept her busy and acutely aware.
My teacher once told me that we only have what comes to us. The wolves taught me that opportunity is not to be missed. They remain constantly aware of what presents itself.
If ever there was a name for this wolf, I would call her "Wonder", short for wonderful.She is gone from here now, having met up with a bigger male that showed up one day last fall in the cove near my house.I heard him calling...a deeper howl, then I heard a clicking sound and looked over to see her coming through the forest to meet him.They met up and took off together, she leading the way.They left the island shortly after that and I keep expecting them with their pups to come through although there's more to sustain them elsewhere.I miss her but I have a beautiful friendly eagle who visits me regularly now and calls to let me know she has arrived...Another story for another time.
A sweet Magpie guided me to your tender offerings here at the most informative, honest, guidepost of a newsletter that the west coast has ever been blessed with!
Susanne, you are such a gift.
I have read all your posts to date and have been very moved by them all- You stir the heart, & soul and continue to speak truth and Earthy Goodness and create art that reflects this— and take action when warranted; here within your newsletter, and for all the decades I have known you and your beautiful family.
I hug you!
~~ Leigh
Always appreciate hearing the wondrous tales of your life. The animals are safe in your presence and you in theirs.