A New Bloom

I stood quietly with sticky palms from the juice that dripped from the hunks of fruit I held.

If you stay quiet, they’ll come to you the locals said. And don’t be afraid. They know when you’re scared.

My Nana told me the story long ago about how her friend had died after seeing demons that no one else could see. She told me about her sister who on her deathbed had asked the others in the room if they could see the angels she was seeing.

Nana said it with such calm, I could do nothing.

Except believe her.

I believed as I stood in the dark with a sticky offering in my hand.

I was thinking about Nana, about angels and demons, when I felt a light touch, a flutter, at my shoulder. A heavy lightness landed and moved, inexorably, toward the hand that held the fruit.

Its claws were more gentle than velvet as it supped on the treat and looked at me with eyes that gave a blessing of thanks.

Those who’ve known me for a while also know that I have a thing for flying foxes (and Shoebills, which is another conversation and likely a post to come in the near future as I gain more wonderful photos — yes, I wrote ‘more’ as I have some actual for-real-life-from-their-natural-space Shoebill photos!). I’ve decided to become a supporter of flying fox (and Shoebill) conservation and protection through my brand, R-Leadership. Sesame was rescued by the great folks at Bats QLD and through R-Leadership, I’ve adopted her. The photo above is the one I got with my certificate of appreciation. If you’d like to learn more about Bats QLD, visit their site here and read up on what they are doing for Queensland’s flying foxes and microbats. Maybe adopt one of Sesame’s fine siblings.

And there you have it!