The Ravens: An Image of Mortality

Recently, dear online friends have passed away suddenly, one last week, and one just last night. So, death and mortality has been on mind lately. I was reminded this morning, upon hearing the news of my friend's passing, of the scene I came upon this past Saturday while climbing the roads near the reservoirs in Angeles National Forest.

On the right side of the road, huddled against a stone retaining wall, was a large dead or dying common raven. It did not appear to be moving, and I thought it must have been hit by a vehicle while attending to some roadkill. As I slowly approached it (I was going up a steep climb), another raven swooped in from my left, carrying some food in its mouth, and cawing loudly and protectively. I recalled that common ravens mate for life, and the loud one must have been the injured raven's mate. As the raven shooed me away, I grimly thought of the futility of trying to feed the prone raven, as at least one of its wings looked badly crushed, and as I mentioned before, it already looked dead to me.

I'm not one to anthropomorphize, since I know most of the animal behavior we see is instinctive, not rationally decisive, and should not lend itself to a romantic view of Nature. Still, Man has Animal nature, which fully informs and influences our behavior and relationships, so I could not deny a sympathetic pang at seeing a desperate raven trying to coax to life or health its last, one true mate. So, my sympathies are echoed louder as I think of and pray for the spouses and families of my departed friends. I will miss them, and I pray their families have strength in the coming days.