amazing

A Wild Soul – The Amazing Story of a Lion

Giulia

A Wild Soul - The Amazing Story of a Lion


I used to be happy. Those memories are pretty blurry now, but, like scars, engraved in my heart. And I will never forget that day…I was just a cub, running happily next to my mother and brothers with all the excitement someone discovering the world can have, in the green tall grass, under the clear blue sky and through the hot dry air. I was learning about my nature and discovering my instincts. But the process ended in a blink of an eye…

After that day, I can only remember steel bars and depressed creatures around me. Humans thought that being so young, this zoo will rapidly become my home and I will adapt, being playful and entertaining for the visitors. I adapted, sure, physically, as I never grew up to be one of those healthy lions with shiny fur or nicely developed muscles. My eyes were always calm and I rarely new anger in here, because the sadness in my heart never left room for any other feelings. I adapted, waiting patiently, to be fed with a piece of smelly meet. I learned to control my thirst until I could receive some fresh water.

I was told that lions are kings, but this world has proven differently. I am just a prisoner. My soul is trapped between two worlds: one that I can never forget and one that I can never escape from. I’ve been told that this is home, but how can these brainless beings call “home” a place that takes away the most important thing one can have…After so many years, ironically, being in such a small place, I have learned a lot. I have learned that when others can harm you, anger won’t help. That will only starve you. I have learned that being calm and gentle might make them give you treats. And I have learned that I hate it when they come in packs, point at me and flash that strong light in my eyes, to have a “memory”.

They usually come with their babies and are very noisy and excited. But from time to time, it happens to see one male or female human, alone, staring and trying to communicate with me. And I sense the sadness and despair in their voices, trying to ease their souls to someone like me…a poor fallen king. And then I sense fear of their own world, of their own failures and mistakes. And those are the moments that should please me the most, by taking an unfair revenge of those who put me here…But I feel pity and frustration, and I wish I could scream and tell them what fools they are. Humans, nothing is impossible for you! You have the most valuable and precious thing in this world…You have your freedom! You have friends and families, you have where to run wild if you want to. But these people I’ve seen made me think that they were the real captives, captives of their own fears and suspicions.

Feeling unable to make them see the reality, I acted friendly, at least to let them know that I understand… I have no other means of being nice to trapped souls, but humans can help each other see the light, not the darkness. And I wish I could tell humans that true friends in life are not the ones who say that they understand…but the ones who shout at you, angrily, to get up and fight…and to cherish your freedom, because freedom is like a magical tree, with new branches and leaves every day…but be careful not to cut the roots.

I am old now. I don’t know how old. I can barely move anymore and I stopped seeing the flashes of the “memories” taken by people. But my soul is running free like in that far away day… And I wish I could have that just one more time… I could have never guessed that it will become just a faint memory… There are so many things I would have done, if I only knew…

The Day That Changed My Life

Giulia

The Day That Changed My Life

Photo by ekeidar


East-european winters are always cold. Every January freezes my blood at the first breath I take outside, in the early foggy mornings when I have to get to work. The cold makes you cover even your nose, to avoid the painful sting of the frost when you breathe in.

It was one of those mornings when I just wanted to call my boss to tell him that I quit, because it was inhuman to walk in 10 centimeters of snow in a time of the day when you could only distinguish everything as shadows, because the sun refused to show up. But the common sense was ringing bells in my head so I kept walking. I was never more anxious to get to the bus station and I started making “warm” wishes to the bank which was delaying my credit for the car ridiculously much.

Swearing in my head and thinking of all the work I had to do at the office, I was fully awake now. But I had a few seconds of doubt about it, when I heard a low faint voice from the corner of the gray building which was waiting to be demolished for over a year now. “Don’t worry”, it said, “we’re gonna survive this one too…”. I stopped. My first thought was to quickly search for some small change to give it to the begger, but turning to see the exact source of the voice, I saw an old woman petting a dog. I couldn’t tell which one of the two looked more awful and skinny. The ground where they stood was without snow, covered in newspapers, and an old smelly blanket, with so many holes in it, that you could barely call it a blanket. The woman didn’t seem to notice me and I was staring like a fool. She took a loaf of bread from a small plastic bag and gave it all to the dog. The poor creature was drooling at it, but only took a bite. Then it waited. But the woman seemed to encourage it, saying “go on, eat it all, it’s your turn this morning”, pushing the loaf towards to dog again.

Without even thinking, I searched my bag, always full of useless stuff, like mirrors and lipsticks and all sorts of bills and found the sandwich I had prepared for my office lunch, as I was usually too busy to take a real lunch break. And I gave it to the woman. Without being able to say a word, seeing my bus I started running, forgetting how slippery my shoes were.

All day I could only hear the woman’s words and her sparkly eyes after I gave my sandwich. That day I had a real break at noon and ate even the desert. When I got back home, the woman was gone…the dog was staring at everyone who passed by, then with a disappointed sad look, started smelling the blanket. The next morning I took with me 3 sandwiches, but again I only saw the dog. I left them there, but the poor animal didn’t even touch them.

After a couple of days, my neighbour paid me a visit and I told him the what happened since that morning. With his black eyebrows raised, he asked me “What? You don’t know the story?”. So he told me that the dog found the begger in that corner one night, almost frozen and it laid cuddled next to her, to keep each other warm. It practically saved her life and they started sharing the bread and the blanket from that day…But after that morning when I first saw them, she died and was taken away…And the dog refused by all means to eat or abandon that corner and the blanket…I gave him food in the first days, but it refused to eat…so I stopped. And after a while I didn’t see it anymore…

That day changed my life and made me wake up more cheerful, enjoy my lunch break and a ride by bus. That day made me see the beauty of my life and be thankful for what I have and for what I can do, every moment.

Unfair Revenge

Giulia

Unfair Revenge


The crowd is heavily applauding. Look at all those rose petals again spreading the wonderful subtle fragrance in the air! And the happy glowing faces…All that emotion and excitement made them shine with sweat. “Oscar wins again!!!” a man shouts counting his earned money from the bets he placed in this race. And those flashing lights all around him and the fresh flower garlands around his neck!

Closing his eyes, the horse waited a moment for his usual treats of sugar and the soft pets on his wet neck…And he waited a few more moments…Then the memories disappeared. Looking around, he once again saw the dark empty stable. The other race horses were in the big sheds, being taken good care of, with excellent food and nice word and that pet on the neck, while he was having wet hey. Oscar’s glorious days were over, he wasn’t the fastest horse in the competitions anymore. In fact, he couldn’t even participate by looking because nobody took him out of there now. In the first few weeks after the incident, he was happy when someone remembered that he’s still alive and needs walking. But moving very slow and getting tired after a few steps, his “walkers” got bored and decided they had better things to do than looking after a handicapped horse.

And now he was alone with an almost blind pony at the other corner of the stable and two skinny donkeys. But they weren’t very good company, they couldn’t understand how it was to have everything one day, and the next to feel like you lost more than you ever had. He could endure the sufferings during the day, because pricking his ears Oscar could hear how the other horses run outside, how they graze and how their jockeys talk to them…And then he could dream that it was him out there, preparing for another winning. But at night…it was unbearable. That awful nightmare keeps stalking him, every night, every time he closes his eyes. After five minutes of sleeping, that man with a cut chin is there again, with his evil look and the long metal stick. Then that thunder that almost left Oscar deaf and then the pain in his leg and the red fluid! It all happened in a matter of seconds and he couldn’t understand why…but every time he tried to sleep he could live again those moments of real terror, with the strong pain and the same words, like an obsessing melody which meant nothing to him “because of you…my money…all the bets…pay for it”.

Then he opens his eyes, but the surroundings don’t get less darker. And that silence is almost hurting his ears and soul. He could never understand what humans are able to do for money, he could never understand why he was abandoned when he was ill, he could never understand what revenge is. His calm round eyes still got wet when someone came to bring the poor food and give some water and he was still hoping for a change…He was hoping that one day someone would talk to him again and feel the encouraging tone once more…But after his leg got infected and cut off, the only words he heard again were: “ Come on boy, we need to move more ponies here, kids will enjoy the rides…Your time is over.”

And then he felt a sting in his neck and the nightmares and memories were gone forever…