One day in the mid-1980's, very quietly, without fuss or announcement, Dad stopped eating meat. Never once, from that moment until he passed away in 2007, did I ever hear him use the word vegetarian to describe himself, yet he never ate meat again. He'd simply finally reached the point where he could no longer square his love of animals with the consumption of dead flesh. He made no big deal of it, felt no obligation to justify his decision and never attempted to persuade anyone else to do the same thing. It was purely a line he felt he could no longer cross. Indeed, Mum continued to be a meat-eater for the rest of her life and it was a further 5 or 6 years until I became a vegetarian.
Dad's love of animals extended well beyond our family pets. Mum's eyes would roll as she'd tell me about car journeys delayed by Dad pulling up to rescue a injured bird (they then drove around for a couple of hours looking for a vet to leave it with) or, in this particular case from 1983, to free a sheep caught in a barbed wire fence on a remote country lane. He wouldn't use any tools to do the job as he neither wanted to accidentally hurt the sheep or damage the fence, so he untangled it painstakingly by hand. The sheep remained calm throughout the lengthy process apparently, seemingly well aware that Dad was friendly and there to help.
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Today's soundtrack is provided by Welsh guitarist Toby Hay, who has released three albums under his own name, another in tandem with Jim Ghedi plus a number of EPs. 'Sheep Song' is Hay's contribution to the 2020 Tompkins Square compilation album 'Imaginational Anthem Vol. X'.
5 comments:
Great photos Swedw
Mrs CC ia a veggie but I'm in your mum's camp I'm afraid
We get a really good idea of the kind of man your dad was from the stories you tell about him. You were lucky to have him. Great to have those pictures too. The Sheep Whisperer.
What an absolutely lovely post and photos, so heartened by your dad's kindness. Amazing that the sheep was so calm, it must have sensed his intent. He sounds very similar to my mum who instilled in us a great love and respect for our fellow creatures too. I can't imagine life any other way.
Lovely stuff Swede.
Thanks all. This kind of thing seemed to happen quite often, judging by similar photos in the family archive.
Your 'sheep whisperer' comment made me laugh Alyson. Dad was many things, but never a whisperer. Quite the opposite. It reminds me of a funny story about him that I'll have to share one day.
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