I requested to review an ARC copy of Alfie and Me by Carl Safina, thinking that it was just another tale of the relationship between an eastern screech owl and the author. And, it is that to be sure.
But, it turned out to be much more. Safina and his wife Patricia rescued a
…more baby screech owl that was near death, dirt-matted and full of fly eggs. Safina, an ecologist, had permits for wildlife rehab, falconry, and bird banding.
Not only did the bird grow and thrive under their care, it found a mate "Plus One" and had three owlets. This is an excellent chronicle of rehabilitating an orphaned screech owl and eventually the entire owl family.
Safina's ongoing relationship with this owl family was so powerful that it led him to research the history of human thought around the relationship between humanity and nature. His extensive footnotes and bibliography indicate that he not only examined the philosophy of indigenous people around the world, but the thinking of various world religions.
His research and experiences with the owl family led him to the conclude that "the world is sacred and that a web of relationship between nature and humans is fundamental". His lesson for the reader is that humans have a special role in caring for the world. "A good relationship with the world is fundamental to good spiritual life and health".
While he says that he doesn't want to oversimplify or idealize the beliefs of "indigenous" people and religious thought, he does. In claiming that "Platonist dualism-preference for mind as opposed to matter, and devaluation of the material world-has been the bedrock of Western thought ever since", I would argue that he has oversimplified the matter by repeating over and over again that "Plato's cancellation of attention and reverence for the seen world became a matter of faith".
That criticism aside, this book is not only delightful in its description of the owl-human relationship. but it is full of wisdom for living. The world would be a better place if we would follow his advice: "To snip some of the barbed wire that keeps us in the pens we erect for ourselves to "feel something in common" is to donate a piece of our isolation to a wider identity". IF ONLY,,,, (less)
