By Bittu Sahgal
This tiger’s sky sends a message. A reminder that life is beautiful. That given free rein, the five senses gifted by the magical biosphere that birthed us will continuously amaze, delight and sustain us and ours, forever and a day.
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How lucky we are. Dynamic, fascinating, reliable... our living planet, with its immeasurable permutations and combinations, is more than a miracle machine. It breathes, as do we. It hurts, as do we. It self-repairs. As do we. And... indulge my anthropomorphism a touch longer... it even angers... as do we.
At the receiving end of insult and injury for decades, the planet is fighting back. Actually, no. Not fighting. Merely snarling angry warnings of hissy-fits to follow if we – the naked apes – refuse to heed the signs. Droughts in Syria. Floods in India. Rare weather system clashes in North America. Melting glaciers and polar caps. Disappearing aquifers. Dead rivers and seas. And, of course, Australia’s devastating fires. All gentle warnings. Very gentle warnings we are free to heed… or disregard.
So… two messages from red skies. One from Neel Soni at the Corbett Tiger Reserve, reminding us that life is beautiful. The other from Australia, screaming at us from our phones, TV sets, newspapers and more, warning us that wayward behaviour can and will be punished severely by the biosphere.
Our ability to absorb and act on the messages will determine how we will be remembered – as arsonists, or firefighters.
