Do-It-Yourself Heroes

On the Jukebox: "The Dolphin Song" by Olivia Newton-John
Mood: Relieved
Quote: "So long and thanks for all the fish." ~ Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Flair: Delphinus

I was watching the news earlier this week and was saddened by the story of the five white beaked dolphins that became trapped behind a wall of ice in a harbor in Newfoundland. The area that they were swimming in was shrinking and there was a danger that they would drown. The residents of Seal Cove could hear their distressing cries and found it especially heart breaking at night. The mayor asked for an icebreaker but one was not available and was it believed it may do more damage to the animals by crushing them. The biggest risk to the animals was not starvation, it was succumbing to exhaustion and suffocating beneath the ice.

Although many have openly criticized the handful of locals who mounted a rescue attempt that *may* have done more harm than good, I applaud their proactive efforts. It took over five hours for the five men to break a path to open water for the dolphins. The philosopher Edmund Burke once said, "All it takes for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing." We've all heard the stories of dolphins who have rescued humans from the sea. I like to think we owe them something in return. They are believed to be one of the highest forms of intelligence on our planet next to mankind. The dolphins were obviously aware of the humans watching from the nearby shore. Who of us could turn our backs on any form of life crying for help?

I've seen, heard, and read things regarding animals that have made me sad. I think of the huge fires burning through Australia and how many people and animals have perished. I'm not a tree hugger, but I still feel for all of God's creatures that suffer (except maybe for spiders.) It made me feel relieved when I read that at least three of the five dolphins were rescued. One is believed to have drowned and another may have made it to open water on its own.

To Brandon Banks, the brave teenage boy who jumped into the frigid waters of the bay and kept that final exhausted dolphin's head above water and towed it to safety - I thank you. I paid a lot of money to swim with dolphins in Mexico but I'm betting that your experience is priceless and that you'll remember it forever.