WARNING! May contain language and descriptions inappropriate for younger readers. Reader discretion advised.

Imagine seeing your child being thrown to the ground upon birth, her head smashing into the floor, her screams filling the room as she experiences the first horrific moments of life.

Picture your toddler with burns covering his body, ear dangling, eye socket empty, unable to utter a sound as the pain is too great and he is near death.

Visualize your preschooler held down by his neck, kicking and screaming as he is being abused by adults for their pleasure, laughing as your baby cries in terror, squeals of agony burned into your brain.

Vivid enough?

Site after site of horrific images, brutal and horrendous treatment, abhorrent cruelty, all by those who receive a perverse sense of joy and pleasure, in my opinion, in these inhumane acts. All re-posted by animal advocates, Mother Nature's Heroes as I call them. People determined to do all they can to end the violence against animals, to end the destruction, to end the suffering of an innocent life.

It has been several months since my last post. Why? Why continue to blog if I'm not consistent? What's the point?

As much as I want to educate and inform people of the conditions of wildlife and farm life, I have been avoiding writing this. To recall their treatment, their suffering, is extremely distressing to say the least and for much of the day I will be out of commission due to the immense sadness. Yes, this is real. Feeling the pain of their torment is overwhelming. Although not many people are like this, there are those few who, like me, feel for non-humans. Imagine that!

Elephants forced to perform, trainer with a whip

I have learned how Elephants are trained for humans to have the "thrill" of an Elephant ride. They are ripped from their mothers at a young age and abused, whipped and stuck with metal prods, beaten and tortured over and over, broken until they submit.

  

I have seen videos of sweet innocent kittens being dangled by their tails, crying out in pain and then set on fire! I have seen videos of a scared little kitten tentatively starting to smell the hand of a "man" who is calling so gently and then...he raises his boot and kicks the kitten high into the air! Videos of fur burned from a puppy, raw skin blackened, eye damaged, ear ripped off. Videos of a puppy after the brutal attacks received from humans, pain filling her eyes, all four feet cut off! Tigers with teeth missing, torn from their mouths, de-clawed which quite often results in pain the rest of their lives.  A baby calf literally pulled out of its Mother and allowed to smash the ground on its head and then be dragged away while the Mother is crying, calling for her child. Videos of the "King", the gorgeous lion, so emaciated he is unable to stand, ribs poking through his stretched skin as he lays on the ground unable to raise his head, waiting for death.

How is this acceptable? How is this any different than if these heinous acts were committed against humans?

The stories and images out there are beyond comprehension. They are inhumane acts. They are committed by people with black souls, heartless and hateful to the core.

I could go on with my description of the torture from these despicable things, as I won't call them human, they can't be.

In regards to the treatment of farm animals, I have heard it all. The primary argument is "This is how it is/been done", and so on. The life of the farm. Actually, no, it's not a life at all. And whether or not this is how it is, it doesn't make it right. If people are set on consuming meat, shouldn't these gifts be treated with care and dignity? Is there a reason for such violence against those you wish to consume? For everything that happens to the animal including their food consumption and stress, meat-eaters will also consume. You are what you eat is 100% accurate!

I'm not going to get into the debate of meat-eaters vs. Vegans. I have my opinions. What I can say and will: watch the videos of how these farm animals are treated.

http://www.pedalingagainstpoaching.com

Over these past several months I have had the pleasure of getting to know hundreds of heroes. I have had communications with sanctuaries, rescue sites and those raising funds to stop the hunting and poaching.

Jeff Harrison, creator of Pedaling against Poaching. He is cycling to raise money to stop the poaching of Rhinos. I have learned so much from him, including how many species of Rhinos exist! An amazing person dedicated to making a change! Check out his Instagram: pedaling_against_poaching. Thanks for everything you have done to educate me! And Thank you for being a hero to these beautiful Rhino's!

http://www.wildcatsanctuary.com

Another of my go to sites is Wildcat Sanctuary, located in Minnesota. They rescue big cats and have been of considerable help to me, even allowing their image of the now deceased black Jaguar to be on my business cards. Please follow them, support them in their mission to rescue. They have a large facility with numerous videos, including a "view from above", showcasing their sanctuary. There aren't enough words to Thank you for all you have taught me and helped me to teach! Thank you!


Big Cat Rescue located in Florida. They have done considerable work in rescuing big cats and helping to stop captivity, traveling across the country to save all species of cat from life in circuses, homes and zoos! They have guided tours of their facilities, post informative videos and have also helped me in educating my preschoolers. Thank you Big Cat Rescue for being a voice and teaching me about these magnificent beauties!

Siberian Tigers

Animal Defenders International, founded in 1990. They have fought to rescue animals from captivity including big cats, monkeys, bears and elephants. Please visit their website. The amount of work they do on behalf of wildlife is astonishing! From beginning to end they ensure the safety and long-term protection for animals. Their efforts are changing lives! Thank you for all you have done to educate and inspire others like myself! Words aren't enough!

http://conservationhalton.com

One of our favourite sites to visit is Mountsberg, part of Conservation Halton in Ontario. This site houses non-releasable birds of prey, receiving their injuries either due to human imprinting, human interference or naturally. They educate and care for over 2 dozen raptors including turkey vultures, a golden eagle and several red-tailed hawks. I had the pleasure of volunteering many years back and was blessed with feeding from the glove and caring for these magnificent creatures. Please visit their facilities and learn all about Canada's native raptors and how you can help preserve their kind.

Polar Bears International, Canadian Raptor Conservancy, Hope for Wildlife, Bear with Us Rescue and Rehabilitation for Bears, Dr. Jane Goodall, Shark Savers, Ocean Defenders, Jaguars into the Wild, The Dodo, Racing Extinction...there are so many wonderful people out there doing what they can to educate and protect and I'm honoured to have been able to talk to many of them!

Please note some of the rescues and sanctuaries I have mentioned have direct links to their websites under Friends of Mother Nature's Heroes on the side of this blog.

Now, for the sites that are posting and informing the public of the brutality. I have to say, I almost stopped following one of the pages due to the graphic images. I did message them and they made a good point. They agreed how horrendous the posts are and want people to realize what is actually taking place.

Animal News 123. Extremely distressing and disturbing videos. This is one of the sites I scroll past quite often due to the graphic nature of the videos. And these people are one of the reasons I'm changing my lifestyle to becoming vegan. The treatment of non-humans has caused such physical and moral unrest that I feel this is more than necessary. On their Instagram homepage their headline is: All Animals Matter! So true! If you would like to learn more about unethical treatment of life, follow their page!

Meat is Murder87. This page is another informative site. And another one where I learned about the vegan life and treatment of animals. They have sent me links to vegan recipes, answered any question I have asked and always been willing to educate and inform. Thank you for all you have done and are doing for our sweet non-humans!


I want to ensure all those who choose to read this blog that those heroes mentioned are only a few of the sites I follow. There are hundreds! I do want to point out, if you see a site with someone cuddling a wild animal, a tiger for example, they are not helping this animal but instead are participating in cub petting, an abusive practice solely for the purpose of profit and not for the benefit of the animal. Wild animals belong in the wild! Whenever I see a post of human contact, I continue to research and may contact the individual, sometimes with a nasty reply. Depending on their response is how I decide to support their project and educate my preschoolers. Big Cat Rescue and Wildcat Sanctuary have posted articles explaining why human contact is abuse.

Is human contact safe for all species of wildlife? In some cases, such as Elephants, I believe there is human contact at sanctuaries although I have yet to fully research these sites.

I am still learning, researching and asking questions! And it is because of what I'm learning that I am educating the younger generation. No, I don't show them the graphic videos. I never tell my preschoolers how people torture and murder.

My preschoolers know there are mean people out there who handle and hurt animals, wild and domestic. They know wild animals belong in the wild. They have learned when they see pictures of people holding a wild animal that they are "mean people"! They are learning the difference between those handling a wild animal for rescue and those who are handling to be mean. When we talk about mean people and hurting Mother Nature, they always say the mean people need to be put in a garbage can and taken to jail! Their words, never taught by me! So smart!

My goal in teaching these children is to hopefully instill the value of life, any life, into these young ones. They are learning to meditate and get the yuckies out so they can hear their heart and tummy, to calm their bodies and when they can do this, the animals may come to them as they have me. A start towards learning compassion for non-humans.

The young generation are much smarter than given credit. They have so much love and compassion. My favourite conversations with my preschoolers revolve around their desire to help Mother Nature.

I'm going to leave you with a comment from my almost 4 year old preschool student: When we do meditation we can help the mean people hear their heart.

We are all deserving of life, together

All photos and images are the sole property of Michelle Boomer and Mother Nature's Heroes, copyright 2018, unless otherwise stated in caption.

Happy World Animal Day! -Wildlife Wednesday

Today is World Animal Day! A day where we need to recognize and appreciate all that Wildlife is, beauty, peace and love.

Wildlife can be viewed as an extension of us. Or rather we are an extension of them? Often certain animals are viewed as bad, a word I abhor, or dangerous and so on. The fact is, none of this is true.

Wildlife just are. They live to experience, just as we do. They aren't going to come to your door in the middle of the night because they're hungry and want to eat you. They're not going to cut you off in traffic because they're in a hurry to go somewhere. They're not going to take anything from you because they want it. Wildlife does not bother humans. We bother them.

Are they dangerous? First ask "Are humans dangerous?" Anyone/creature can be dangerous in certain circumstances. If you decide to put yourself in a situation with a crocodile, elephant, snake, bear, giraffe, chimpanzee... you need to expect the outcome may not be what you want.

If you put yourself in a situation with a human who is intent on survival, you need to expect the outcome may not be what you want here either.

Wildlife act on instinct, survival and reproduction to put it simply. They are necessary for our planet. They are a gift for all of us to appreciate, each and every species. And they can help us if you choose to let them.

How? How can a squirrel help me, you ask? With this you need to open your mind. What do you believe in? Afterlife? A higher power? Messages from above? Did you ever stop to think that wildlife may have messages too, if you just listen?

Wildlife, Nature and the Environment can send messages. Yes, these words are in caps, because they are titles and I want to get my point across. Many cultures and religions believe in this. Now I'm not saying because a certain religion has this belief that you must also. What I am saying is pay attention to your surroundings and you may be surprised.

Example: I often had dreams, or rather nightmares of snakes and serpents hunting me. They would chase me, appear in the sky, wrap themselves around my arm and yes, I was bitten. Did it hurt? No. It felt like a pressure on my bicep. Was is trying to tell me something? Absolutely.

I have listened to the Snake and now it is one of my totem animals. I love and respect this animal so much that my first novel has a snake as the main character! Sally the Snake -The Quest to the Beginning was written before I grew to love this creature interestingly enough. Now she is published and I educate my preschool children about snakes as often as I can.

Have you ever looked into the eyes of an animal? Do you turn the channel when stories of wildlife abuse and cruelty appear on your t.v.? Do you pretend it isn't happening?

Wildlife has a direct connection to humans. What is happening to them is happening to us. The most obvious example is the Polar Bear. They are losing their habitat, food and numbers. Why? I think you know the answer. The world is heating up which means ice melts, simple. Ice melts=polar bears can't hunt=no food =no polar bears. Humans fault.

Overflowing city garbage=raccoons in homes=household damage=death to raccoon. Humans fault.

Yes, people are victims too I understand that. The difference is that wildlife doesn't choose to invade, starve, suffer. The situation is forced on them by humans. They act out of survival, instinct.

Today, on this World Animal Day, recognize these beauties and educate your family and friends. Wildlife is precious, special and such a gift to all of us. They are unique in their design. They are diverse in their abilities. They are simple in their complexity.

When you are driving your car and see a bird soaring high above, recognize its splendor. If a possum gets stuck in your garbage can, yes it has happened to us, show it love and speak softly. The poor thing is scared to death!

Maybe you live in an area where you haven't had the privilege of observing much wildlife. I have been speaking to an amazing site that allows you to view Wildlife in the natural habitat. Yes, you can see Polar Bears/Bears in the wild, Sharks in the ocean, Elephants drinking, Beluga whales, Baboons climbing down their trees in the morning - I watched them this morning!

Explore.org is a live cam site with footage all day, every day of nature's beauties! This is the site I use to show my preschool children how Wildlife live, not in zoos! I have told my former and current parents, family, friends and anyone who will listen, about this wonderful site where we can be a part of the beauty without disturbing those who live there!

Wildlife experience pain, sadness, joy. Some on levels unlike our own but should that matter? Are we the ones to decide if they feel or not? Life is life.

Let's love all life. Hate, fear and violence only produces more of the same. And showing respect and love to Wildlife can be the start of a better future for every living being on Earth.

I may have been rambling here a bit but for good reason. Too often I see the dismissiveness of others to anything that isn't human or even worse that isn't material! Technology, clothes, make-up, etc. are often more important than the life of another species. This is something I will go on about until I am unable to speak, read or write!

So, thank you for reading my rant and allowing me to express my love, my passion. After all:

We are all Mother Nature's Heroes, all deserving of life, together.

Getting Published! -Miscellaneous Monday

It's your first time publishing a book! Or maybe it's your 5th time! Either way, seeing all of your hard work come to fruition is exciting and overwhelming.

Hello all! Welcome back to Mother Nature's Heroes Family! Yes, we have been absent for a bit this summer!

So, what's new? Well, for the past couple of months I have been working diligently on my soon to be released preschool books!

We have an early middle grade novel doing quite well already! Sally the Snake -The Quest to the Beginning is well know in our community and several others in Southern Ontario! She has been well received and is the first in a series of middle grade novels which will eventually link with our upper middle grade novel entitled: Bala the Unicorn -The fight for Survival.

We will be releasing 4 preschool books this Fall! Here's a sneak peek at some of the illustrations and a bit of their storylines.

The first is called: Mr. Toad and the Volcano. This is a story about a toad hopping into a volcano and having to find a way out!!!

This story was the very first I told at a local day care in 2011! Upon telling the story, I asked the children how Mr. Toad could possibly get out of the Volcano. One thing you need to know, these were Toddlers! One little boy shouted out an answer which became the end of the story. Thank you Wil!

Telling this story led to the next. I usually make them up as I go, not knowing what is going to happen but always making sure the children are interested. If they're not, change it up!

The second preschool book is: Bunny and the Rocket Ship. Bunny wants to go to outer space but meets with danger during her trip!

The third and fourth books are: The Chocolate Monster and the Curse, The Chocolate Monster and the Witch. These books were made from one into two books due to the length of the story. They are about a chocolate monster, and evil witch and a curse that couldn't be broken!

These stories have been well told for the past 6 years! Finally, after not originally considering publication, I have decided to take these well loved stories to print! With full illustrations each page, your child will have the unique opportunity to colour their own book!

Yes, you read correctly! The stories are line drawings! Children will be able to personalize their story as they like!

After polling close to one hundred children, the vote was unanimous! Every single child would want their own unique story to colour!

Each of the illustrations was hand drawn, free hand, no tracing or help from an outside party involved.

So, why am I telling you this? Because once upon a time there was a little girl with a dream but no one (except her Mother), teacher, family, friend had faith she could do much of anything, she was little, quiet and not outgoing. Being an Author and more specifically an Illustrator was out of the question. Do you know how many people want to be the next big thing? Too much competition, you're not an artist, everyone does it, thousands write and never get published, self-publishing isn't recognized, and on and on and on.

The thing is, self-publishing is being recognized! Long gone are the days where all you had to do was look at a book and know right away it was self-published. Years ago I purchased a book from a self-published Author, wanting to support him in his dream. Upon opening the book, I noticed the haphazard margins, lack of consistency in the print, the length of the pages, the poor colour, etc. Yes, this was definitely self-published. I felt bad for this man.

Now, self-publishing involves editing, correct margins, precise colouring of illustrations, obtaining ISBN's, and promotion, promotion, promotion among other things!

I had the good fortune to have lengthy emails, a couple years ago, with a well-published and well-known children's Author who has travelled our great country at length. (Due to the unavailability of this person and not being able to request a quote, I am unable to reveal his name.) I was educated about the publishing world quite thoroughly. At this time, this Author has sold a million of his books and is still going! And he is self-published! How's that for legitimacy?

What I have learned is that neither the self-publishing or traditional publishing houses have much nice to say about one another. If you pursue the traditional route, it is often best to have an agent. Obtaining one is difficult to say the least. There is no guarantee they will sell your book. If they charge you, they are not a legitimate agent. Real agents only get paid if you get paid, remember that.

After attending several writing seminars, writing courses and researching for hours and hours, I have learned there are both positives and negatives to each world. It is more difficult to find an agent and publishing house, but the marketing and exposure is vast.

While self-publishing may appear the easy route, you have to market and promote which can be challenging given your knowledge and sales ability. After all, you are selling yourself.

I was originally signed by a boutique publisher. The back and forth from one contact to another over a span of several months, 4 different people in total I believe, was stressful. I never knew who knew what about my contract, or who was doing what or why did they give me contact after contact?The original contract was not honoured and after a year and a half of nonsense, I ensured it was terminated. Needless to say, not all small publishing companies are honest or care about the author. Sad, but true.

So, in the end, you must set your priorities, your commitment, your time, and your level of persistence to help you determine the best path for you. Talk to Authors, take courses, attend seminars and meet agents. Get a feel of what you're willing to do.

The one positive from the boutique publisher was the lack of Illustrator they were to obtain. This never happened. How is this a positive? I forced myself to be the Illustrator and now I will have completed 5 books as of this fall. How's that for determination!

You never know what you're capable of or what your priorities actually are until you are in the situation. Focus, strive for your dream. Always.

And no I haven't forgotten Fact or Fiction Friday. The last entry was the Shed. Did you guess is correctly? Fiction? Yes, although the actual Shed is located in the Halton region of Southern Ontario.

We are all Mother Nature's Heroes, all deserving of life, together.

The Shed -Fact or Fiction Friday!

This Fact or Fiction story is for you to figure out whether or not this is a true event or one of complete fabrication.

Hello all! It has been a bit since our last post, summer has been extremely busy for Mother Nature's Heroes which is a good thing!!!

As you may recall, Fridays will be dedicated to stories, be them truthful or not, regarding any topic.

Now, on to the reveal of our last Fact or Fiction Friday-The Inheritance. Did you figure it out? Research on the internet? Guess?

This was FICTION! Although the house in the photos as well as the gentleman did/do actually exist, the story behind them is completely false! You can find this story on Commuterlit.com entitled "The Surprise" by Michelle Whitehead.

To refresh your memory about the rules of the game: anything written after the words-Fact or Fiction may indeed be true or not.  Until you read the same words again, everything in between is part of the story.

Let us begin!

FACT OR FICTION?

This story takes place in north Burlington, just off of Walker's line.

There is an old abandoned shed, picture seen here, in the middle of no where so it seems. Beautiful wild flowers grow along side the back, a rickety wire fence with large gaps is a few feet away.

You have to climb somewhat of a steep hill off the side road to get to it, and if you didn't know it was there, you would never climb the hill, as you would probably never seen the almost non-existent path leading up to it.

This shed can be seen from Rattlesnake Point, high above the shed, where climbers like to practice their rappelling skills.

Now, old abandoned houses, sheds, shacks, buildings of any kind usually have a story and this one is no different.

I met a young lady while hiking with my husband at one of the conservation parks, who had lived in the area since birth but more importantly, her family had lived in the area since the late 1800's! Like me she loved history and discovering the stories of her ancestors.

She was familiar with this particular shed and actually asked me why I was interested.

Honestly, I had no idea why. Curiosity mainly. Why was this shed standing in the middle of no where, with no other buildings in sight? There was no road leading up to it, no path other than the one I made through the long grass up the hill, crawling over the broken wire fence behind the shed.

I have always  been intrigued by dilapidated buildings, especially those with no apparent connection with previous life.

She told me the shed had belonged to one of the farms which had since been torn down, just a mile from the shed. The shed was one of the storage buildings farmers would use to store machinery needed for their crops, especially if one broke down at the back end of the property. There was no dead body, or hidden treasure or anything sinister like you see on T.V.

So, the mystery of the shed was no mystery at all. But I did want to see what kind of machinery I could find, and if these antiques were still there. What an amazing find if anything was left, so naturally we went back and I went inside the shed. The entire front side of the building was gone which led me to believe this lady's story was probably true. The less material needed, the less money spent back in the day.

We dug through the rusted piles of metal, nothing seeming to have any particular shape, mostly piles of broken old farm equipment. I couldn't make anything out, nor could my husband. We found nests of wild animals, skeletons of rodents and other small creatures which was interested as I love teaching about wildlife. I decided to carefully pick up a few bones to examine and see if we could figure out what kind of animal they belonged to. As it was shaded in the shed, we couldn't tell at that time.

We trekked back down the hill to the dead end road and went home. The bones we collected were of a skunk and a bunny, no surprise.

Several weeks later we had a knock on the door. When my husband opened the door there was a policeman on the other side.

A dead body had been found yards from the shed, buried only recently and someone had seen us drive down the road. Since the road was used for the Quarry nearby, they wrote down our licence plate and reported suspicious activity! When we were questioned, interrogated more like it, and our fingerprints taken without a lawyer,-we were quite young at the time, it was discovered that we were the prime suspects. Our fingerprints were all over the murder weapon. A rusted piece of metal.

This happened years ago and I'm writing it to tell everyone to leave well enough alone. Leave the old abandoned buildings, the apparent neglected locales, the broken what-evers. Please. I'm telling this in the first person as I don't wish my identity to be known, it has been hard enough to fit back into society and we have moved several times and now live in a different country. We never want to return to our hometown, ever.

FACT OR FICTION?

Love of all life -Wildlife Wednesday

Sitting at my computer late this evening, when I usually would have a blog posted, I find that I'm having a hard time focusing on what I want to say. I had originally intended to write about the Big Cats, or Birds of Prey, or the Wolf population. However I feel compelled to write about the recent posts I've have read on the popular social media page facebook.

As you read my blog, you will begin to understand my love and passion for wildlife, hence the day dedicated to just this topic.

Every day I read a post, article or other informative piece of information regarding the plight of our wilderness. Tonight I read how children tortured a small defenceless puppy and it brought me to tears. Tears to the point of sobbing at such horrific abuse, and the torment this sweet baby endured.

I will never understand how the brain develops the ability to inflict such torture, pain and complete lack of empathy for another living creature.


This post isn't intended to educate, or give factual information. This post is to express and evoke a sense of emotion for creatures other than ourselves.

Look into the eyes of your pet. See the life. See the personality. Our fur babies have personalities, attitudes, unique behaviours that make them who they are. Anyone with a pet knows this.

Feel the love. Feel the connection. Look into their eyes and see the life, the profound love they have for their human. The sheer joy they express when you open the door after coming home from work, when they can't seem to get enough of you and follow you from room to room, happy you're there.

Hear their heartbeat when you lay your head on their chest, the life other than your own. Feel their soul when you rest your face on their body, the knowledge that another creature is breathing, thinking, existing that you didn't create. This is a member of your family, a sacred being, a special creature your chose to be part of a special bond, your Family. Nothing is more sacred than the love shared among family.

Now, imagine this life broken. Legs snapped. Fur burned. Head battered and bloody. Tail ripped from their body, or limp and dangling on the ground. Their fearful eyes crying, not understanding why. Not understanding what they did to deserve the brutality.

Imagine this poor defenseless creature stuffed into a garbage bag, knot securely tightened, sitting in the back seat of a car until it is thrown out the window into the ditch, like the trash. Unwanted garbage that no one will miss, laying in the grass, starving to death, crying for it's Mommy, screaming out of fear. Imagine the horror this being is experiencing, not knowing what is going on, with no Mommy or Daddy to protect it, unable to breath. Vivid and horrific, right?

This is happening. Children are torturing pets, domestic animals for enjoyment! And not just children, adults too.

Helpless, defenseless creatures often become the victims of human games. From lighting a kitten on fire, to throwing one out the car window and worse. Whatever you can imagine is happening.

It is the job of the adult to instill the love and care for Mother Nature in the next generation. While one may feel wildlife is not as important as humans, there must also be the realization that wildlife is here for a reason, if only to make people empathetic to life other than their own.

I often think of the creatures living a fearful existence, and hope they either leave their world of torture sooner than later, or that somehow, someway, they will be saved. No life deserves to suffer. No life deserves to live in fear. No life deserves to experience brutality. Ever.

I like to think that while this is my opinion, I'm not alone in my beliefs. I hope there are more people with the desire to protect life rather than destroy it for the "enjoyment" they think it brings. And in fact, there is no enjoyment, just behaviours indicative of deranged and sociopathic individuals.

After all, we are all Mother Nature's Heroes, all deserving of life, together.

Miscellaneous Mondays first edition -In Memoriam

It's been 2 weeks since I held in my hands a sweet baby Robin. It's been 2 weeks since this baby took its last breath. It's been 2 weeks since I watched life leave and I can still see its face as its mouth stopped breathing and its eyes closed one last time.

Two weeks ago this past Sunday, yesterday, I was in the living room watching my 2 fur babies stare out the patio doors at a young Robin hopping around our backyard.

The baby had lost its baby fluff on the top of its head but still had the young feathers on its breast. Not an adult, but not a fledgling anymore.

I went about my work when only a few short minutes later I heard a thump on the patio window. I knew what this meant. When I walked to the door and looked outside, there was no bird at the step, or anywhere on the ground. Hoping the bird had hit the window and continued flying, I thought it best if I checked in between the step and container on the ground beside it.

There it was. The young Robin sprawled out, its left wing spread off to the side, its head tilted left, its mouth opening and closing as it tried to catch its breath.

I carefully picked it up and thankfully its wing folded back in properly. It seemed to have movement in its head as it bobbed it around a bit.

I gently placed it on the ground so it could catch its breath and recover. As I watched it breathing, I thought to check if it had any strength in its legs, and to make sure it could breathe properly.

No strength in the legs. This was not a good sign. I began to tell it to live, please not to go. I rubbed its chest. Its breathing slowed. Its eyes slowly started to close. Then it went home.

The baby is now on the next journey, its body resting on the densely covered ground among the vines.

I cried. I broke down and sobbed for hours. I had held a life and watched as it left this world and went on the next.

We did some errands that day instead of our original plans and I met a wonderful lady who shared my sadness. Everything happens for a reason. The baby was meant to go home that day, and I was blessed and honoured to be the person to comfort it as it passed on.

Baby birds often fly into windows, this isn't unusual. Acknowledging this life as precious and sharing this story allows me to honour its memory and teach others all life is important.

After all, we are all Mother Nature's Heroes, all deserving of life, together.

FACT OR FICTION FRIDAY -featuring the story of The Inheritance.

You have just attended the funeral of your Mother and your lawyer hands you a deed to a house you never knew existed.

Welcome back! We have been negligent in our posts as of late, however I thought it a good idea to return with a new segment: Fact or Fiction Friday!

Fridays will feature stories, either factual or fiction pertaining to, well, anything! This game originally started at an after school program. Events/stories, etc. were discussed and the school agers had to decide whether or not what they heard was fact or fiction. Now, there was a ghost story and whether or not you believe in ghosts this also fell into fact or fiction based on if it was a reported incident in the news or if it was a fiction story from a movie/book, etc.

This is how it works: at the beginning of the story you will read: Fact or Fiction. Anything written after those words may be true or not. When you read: Fact or Fiction at the end, this means the story is finished and what is written after that is not part of the game.

Let's begin!

FACT OR FICTION

The Inheritance

All people, places and events have been altered to protect the identity of those involved.

A few decades ago a young lady named Amy lost her Mother in a car accident. Her Father had passed only a few months prior due to health related issues. She had no other family as both parents were the only child, and her younger brother died when he was just 8 years old after jumping into the pond and cracking his head on a rock.

After the funeral the family lawyer informed Amy of her new car and house. A Mach 1 Mustang. This I remember!

Apparently Amy had no idea her Mother owned either car or another house as they were not a close knit family. She had moved out in her teens.

She left for the mystery house right after the funeral. It was hours away from where her family lived, out in the country down a rut filled dirt road. She had to park up on the hill and walk to the driveway.

No one knew she had gone to find the home. This is important to know.

The house was covered with vines and hidden by a forest of trees and brush. At the back of the house the garage had been cleared just enough to install a camera. This is important to know.

A strange man approached her, appearing to be in his 20's and asked who she was and if she needed any assistance. Obviously Amy was startled and she searched her purse for something in which to protect herself. When she looked back up, the stranger was gone.

She had to enter the house by the back door.

She entered the home and saw the house was under renovations. The kitchen was gutted, new cupboards were still in their boxes, the floor was torn up and the walls were stripped to the studs.

Amy wandered the home and went upstairs. These stairs were very steep and slick. White and shiny. This too is important.

There was a large room before her with two doors at the one end of the farthest wall. She went to the furthest door, the one on the left, and found inside a tiny room filled almost to the ceiling with cardboard boxes. When she opened one after the other, she saw men's clothes. Leather jackets, jeans, casual dress shirts, loafers, and so on. Her Father never wore anything other than suits and button up dress shirts when he was relaxing.

She left the room, obviously confused and went to the remaining room on the right. When she tried to open this door, she was met with some resistance. After pushing she discovered why.

The room looked recently decorated. The floor was newly carpeted with plush white carpet, soft green walls, an antique rocking chair in the corner by the window with a small ornate table and lamp to the right. It also smelled of lavender which was unusual. She knew this meant her Mother had been there recently, otherwise the smell wouldn't be as strong as it was.

She saw a threatening letter addressed to her Mother from someone claiming to be related to her Father. She figured this the reason for the camera at the back of the house.

She closed the door behind her and saw a few feet from the ceiling a 3X3 foot cupboard. When she opened it there was nothing to see but when she reached in and felt around she found 2 small boxes. One was a large shoe box and the other a fancy metal container.

This is where things get really interesting.

She opened the shoe box and found letters addressed to her Mother from a man she had never heard of. She opened several and discovered they were love letters. One in particular struck her as odd as it mentioned her Father's name, Owen. The writer of the letters, who she saw from his signature was named Quinn, wrote how he didn't trust her Father and he wanted her Mother to stay away from him, he was dangerous.

Amy read most all of the letters as they were scattered about the floor. The metal container had only a few objects in it, but what they were changed her life forever.

There was 2 wedding rings, engraved with her Mother's name: Sophie, and the stranger's name: Quinn! There was a small wedding album with pictures of her Mother marrying Quinn, their honeymoon and the last picture was of the house. A birth certificate with her name and the names of her Mother and Quinn were listed as her parents! The last remaining item in the box was a picture of a man holding a baby. On the back of the picture read: Me and my baby girl Amy! The man in the picture was the man who had approached her outside only minutes before!

The most disturbing of the letters from the shoebox was the one in which Quinn wrote in a scribbled hand that he loved her Mother and that Owen did it.

Now, what I haven't mentioned is that Quinn was found at the bottom of the stairs, in this house, dead with the scribbled note in his hand. He died the year Amy was born.

In the large room at the top of the stairs was a crib, basinet and all items related to having a baby.

Amy knew the man she thought was her Father was in fact the man who murdered her biological Father.

As you can imagine this was devastating. She never did find out why her Mother married a killer or why Owen killed Quinn. She never knew.

She raced back to the box filled room and dug through the boxes, finding the leather jacket. She put it on, grabbed her baby picture and headed to the stairs.

When she approached the stairs, she saw the man from the picture standing at the bottom, looking up at her and smiling. Her Father. No one knows exactly what happened, but it is assumed she started down the stairs, twisted her ankle and fell to her death, the baby picture floating out of her hand and landing beside her body.

Now since then the house has been cleared of all overgrown trees, brush, etc. You can see to the right of the picture, where she would have entered the house up the back steps of the deck.

Fact or Fiction?

Now, I have either embellished the facts with what I believed to have happened, since we will never know if this person actually saw anyone at the bottom of the stairs, or I have made up the entire story.

What do you think?

Have fun figuring it out! The answer will be posted on the next Fact of Fiction Friday!!! Please share your answers in the comment section!!!