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Sun | July 03, 2005
I think I killed a sparrow
on friday I was walking home, and as I got to the driveway I noticed a sparrow standing on the ground in the middle of the road. I noticed it didn't fly away even though I passed within a few feet of it. So I turned around and took another look. It didn't look injured or anything, but it still didn't fly away-- it just hopped. it spread its wings a little in an attempt to fly but it just hopped. it was really cute so I followed it a little more. it was just so cute as it hopped and chirped. then suddenly it hopped into a drain. I hadn't watched where I was going and I was just like OMG.
I felt so guilty. in retrospect I realize it was a fuzzy chick. it wasn't really fuzzy persay, but its feathers weren't as neatly patted down as an adult sparrow's. it was kind of fluffy. That was one thing I noticed during those few seconds that I menaced the poor thing. and it had started to chirp because it was scared. I thought it was cute but it was actually terror.
I told my dad about it and we got to talking about how he used to eat sparrows in taiwan. His uncle would put up a net maybe fourty feet wide. He would tie the nearly transparent net between two trees in the area where the sparrows were hanging out. Then he'd blow an eagle whistle. The sparrows would fly into the net.
My dad also used to catch frogs. The way he caught them is kind of neat. but I'll save that for another day. or perhaps never. I think any chinese person who knows how to do it would tell it freely, but I like to keep a few things to myself.
There is something nice about living in an environment/lifestyle where you catch your own food, and sort of find your way about using what is around you. It's like you have a real relationship with the world instead of this completely manufactured one. Or I guess it's just being connected with the natural environment, actually participating in this predator-prey relationship that all other animals do.
My dad has mentioned more than once that you can't eat anything in taiwan anymore (that is, you can't just go out and catch something to eat) because it is all polluted. When he went back for his father's funeral the river where he used to catch frogs was polluted and had no more frogs. His neighbor had a fish farm and now it is filled in and is a car dealership. My dad's farm grew rice and a bunch of other stuff. He says everyone grew everything, a few different things, whatever they felt like. And then they'd share with their neighbors.
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