FOOD FOR THOUGHT

By: Etienne Janse Van Rensburg

Iwas watching a Hadeda on the Village Green with his long beak buried deep in the grass. It pulled out a muddy worm from under the damp substrate, gulping it down in one slick motion. I could almost taste the muddy slime in my mouth. I imagined how tasteless and disgusting it must be, but also understood that some species rely on disgust to survive. It's their staple diet. And then there is that obnoxious noise they make. Surely that has no purpose. They probably do that to annoy us or chase us from their territory. How will we ever know?

Kids were joyfully playing a game of soccer in the background. It was lovely to see the field being used as I think it was intended. It gave me a sense of community. Untainted souls just having fun. Together.

I’ve been spending a lot of time staring at the field lately. It calms me. I walk around the parameter several times a day to make sense of random questions people ask me. "Maybe they're too far down from the source of the truth on the broken telephone line…" a wise tree once whispered.

Later in the day, people arrive for the space and the afternoon sun. The dogs run freely while their owners use the opportunity to switch off from a long day of work, online-shopping, or gossip.

I want to encourage everyone to have a walk on the Village Green. Although it has a sense of community on the one hand, it also has a disconnectedness on the other. Go play soccer or eat worms. Make obnoxious noises on the open field. There definitely is a good energy there and lots of space to be yourself, or maybe just to be weird without any embarrassing consequences.