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RUNNING WITH THE WOLVES Feb 17, 2007 Susan Bates

Recently, two timber wolves escaped from Predator World near Branson. The pair, male and female, had recently begun their confinement in strong steel cages where they could be stared at by humans. She is pregnant. He is her protector. There was no den for her to burrow into to give birth inside their prison. Strange scents assaulted their noses. The cries of tigers and bears, natural enemies to the pair, must have been frightening to them. The thought of living in that constant terror was too much. Gathering every ounce of strength they possessed, the two wolves chewed and pulled and squeezed through the thick wire. Now they are free in the hills of Southern Missouri. Now they can find a safe place to make a den. He can provide for her. She can give birth. There will be hunting parties searching for them. Most of the humans will use tranquilizer darts to render them unconscious so they can be taken back to their prisons to live the rest of their days earning money for their captors. Some men may use live ammunition. The smell of blood gives them satisfaction. Wolves have a bad reputation. But nowhere nearly as bad as man does. My heart goes out to these wolves. I remember stories I have been told of my ancestors. How they suddenly were descended upon by white men. Their homes torched. Their children murdered. Marched to stockades where they survived in filth and cold with little food or water. And no hope. Later they were forced to walk into the West - the direction of Death for the Cherokee... Some walked barefoot in the snow carrying their dead babies. Many died along the way, their bodies lying in unmarked graves. My heart also goes out to the Spirits of these People and if our eyes could see them, maybe they are running with the wolves, cheering them on. Free at last. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

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