Lack of balance

Today we discussed with our patient. We once again came back to his favorite subject, which is nature. He explained his love for nature in a deeper manner.

” When I am within nature, I am both lost and found. I am confused and, yet, I know exactly what to do and when to do it. Sometimes I feel like I own this forest, its trees and its animals because I am the smartest living being and that my species controls this planet… But a second later I believe that nature owns me and that I am part of it and that it is tolerating the humans until now.

  

I saw entire forests being cut down. I saw empty, desecrated mountains. I saw the raping of nature. I don’t know if it’s necessary… I always thought that some being made the trees just for us. When I think about the many properties of trees, I can’t but wonder if something put them there so we could evolve with their help. The trees are everywhere. You can burn them to cook food or to escape from the cold. You can use them as a construction material… And the leaves of the trees give us this healthy oxygen. The trees are practically everywhere, as if this being wanted to make sure we would always have them to build anew.

 

I encountered many wild animals during my life. I’ve seen things others will never see, which is a shame. Our ancestors used to connect with these animals. We would hunt them and feed on them, and sometimes they would hunt and feed on us. But nowadays, most of humanity lives isolated from these animals. Now the animals are lost, because we let them behind. We took their trees, so they cannot hide anymore. Sometimes the predators cannot find the animals they used to prey upon because of this.

 

My grandfather’s friend, an old indian, once told me about one of his many adventures in the wilderness in the beginning of the 20th century. He remembered encountering a wolf at the peak of its life. The wolf was strong, tall and massive. The indian, who was only 8 years of age, defied it by standing straight with his arms wide open. His life was in danger, for the lone wolf was strong enough to kill him. The wolf stood on its four legs for a minute, then sat. After a long moment of silence, the wolf turned its back on the boy and left.

 

I’ve never experienced such a thing. Nowadays, the wolves are very rarely seen. They are weak and pitiful. Their fur is wet, dirty and lacks vitality. They hunt mice or other little critters because the men hunt the moose and deers down. These large animals used to be able to live long enough to be sick and weaker, but not anymore. Before this, the wolves would hunt the weakest… Men do not give them the time. The men even hunt the babies now because they fear they will not be able to encounter another moose or deer during their hunting trip. The men also hunt the strongest, most healthy animals. This results in the weaker ones surviving and reproducing, making other generations of even weaker animals. I do not like what I see in the future when I think about this.

 

I don’t know when we lost our way. In fact, I don’t even know if we lost it. Maybe it’s part of this evolution process. Maybe these animals are destined to die out one day or another. Maybe. But when I encounter an animal, I don’t feel like we respect them. They are naive. They do not know anything. Some of them trust us and we deceive them. “