Have I ever told you about my friend Liberty Gold? We met in high school, a million years ago, and I was in awe of her from the first moment.
Liberty, even at 15ish, had serious magic, and even back then, I knew it. She could create a piece of art from nothing, draw a portrait of you better than a Polaroid, and nurse a piece of nature back to life from the brink of death. All at the same time. She still can.
A couple of weeks ago, we had a string of terrible storms.
Liberty Gold lives in the branch of Eden located down on River Road. Her neighbors, the Wren family, had been hit hard by the storms, as did many of the inhabitants of River Road Eden.
"How many baby Wrens where there before the storm?" I ask. "That's an epic tale of survival and love."
"I'm not sure, I thought 4 but it could have been 5. That snake had a mighty big bulge." Liberty answers.
"OH MY GOD!" I shriek like only an urban princess can, "There was a snake? Fine, now I have to hear the whole story."
"OK, here it is.", Liberty begins, "There was a terrible screeching of Wrens outside the door last evening, after the storms and the hail and the flooding. The parent Wrens were yelling and fluttering about in a mad frenzy. I know not if the babies were screaming as well, it was difficult to hear anything above the din."
"I ran out to see what was the matter and to my amazement, there... wound up around the nest, engulfing it completely, even as to enclose the only opening that would allow escape of the poor doomed chicks within... was a rather large rat snake, it's body writhing as it constricted the once safe and loved home of my little house Wren family."
"Without thinking of my own safety", Liberty grins at me, "I snatched up the snake in one hand as I tried to catch the fleeing babies as they tumbled from the nest in horror. The snake, (dastardly fiend), had a rather largish bulge in it's midsection... too late for that one i thought, as i carried the wicked marauder of to an undisclosed location."
I picture Liberty holding Wren babies in one hand while swinging the snake over her head with the other.
"Once back at the nest," she continues "the young birds were scattered about the porch with the parents diving and calling in obvious and sheer panic. Returning the babies to the nest was an exercise in futility to say the least. Looking closer, one of their siblings was still in the nest... it's lifeless body a horrible reminder of what they were trying to escape."
Liberty gives me a heavy sigh, "Gawd this is taking forever. So, the babies fled in all directions, into the late evening twilight... with more storms rumbling off in the distance."
"Anyway... there were 3 in a nice little pile on the steps this morning and mom and dad in attendance." and that is the end of her story.
I'm in awe and can only muster a "WOW", speechlessness being foreign to me. "That was an epic tale of courage."
That Liberty Gold is my girl. I love her.
