Memento Mouri

I have to warn you, I get mildly philosophic in this post. There is biking, there is birding, but there is also  call to action, to be aware of what's going on in the world around you.

Part of my Worldview states: "Everything is connected". Every moment I experience can teach me something that can profoundly impact me later.
One such moment came recently in my preparation for a trip out west to see Yellowstone. Driving the car to the service station, I saw a bird dart in front of me. In the time it took to think "Oh NO!", the bird bounced up from my grill, over my grill, across the roof, and onto the road behind me.

Dead.

I killed  bird with my car. I saw enough black and white and red to know that it was a red-bellied woodpecker. I've watched this species in all aspects of its lifecycle. I've seen them excavate cavities for nesting, feed their young in their homes, bring them to feeders, exist around the neighborhood, and now, I've seen one die. I continued to the auto service place, and dropped my vehicle off to be serviced. Because servicing would take a while, I brought my bicycle to ride home. I rode by the place where I hit the bird, and took this picture.

Memento Mouri

It had already been hit at least once since I killed it. Later that day it had been obliterated to the point where there was nothing left but a stray feather hanging onto the gutter. Waiting for a strong wind.

Memento Mouri.

I regret playing a part in the bird's final moments. I do not seek to take life unintentionally. We live in a world where such accidental destruction takes place and is quickly swept up and forgotten, tossed aside in the name of Progress, Convenience, or Survival. Yet, because I was there, I can remember, I am as much flesh as this bird is flesh, as are we all.