Editor ’ s Notes
A Story of Storm by Fr . Richard Bayuk , c . pp . s ., Editor
The following story is from the local ( Kansas City ) npr website , July 18 th . The video described can easily be found online .
Dogs are cute . Baby deer are arguably even cuter . So , what could be more heroic and life-affirming than a dog saving the life of a fawn ? Storm , an English golden retriever , was out for a walk Sunday morning along the Long Island Sound with fellow dog Sara and his owner , Mark Freeley . Amid the lapping waves , a baby deer was in over its head out in the sound . “ Storm just plunged into the water and started swimming out to the fawn ,” Freeley told cbs New York .
Freeley took video and provided narration of the occasion . “ Storm is trying to save this baby deer ,” he begins . Then a note of doubt creeps into Freeley ’ s voice . “ I think he ’ s trying to save him .” Storm … grabs the deer by the scruff of its neck , swims it to shore and then brings it to rest on the sand . The deer is seen breathing heavily but otherwise remains still . There are a few worrisome seconds when it looks as if Storm might bite the very woodland creature he carried to safety . But the nips turn to nuzzles as Storm prods the deer , as if checking to see whether it ’ s alive . The video ends there , but not the rescue . Possibly spooked by Storm , the fawn ran back into the water . “ This time it went out even further ,” Freeley told cbs . Freeley and another man … waded into the sound and used a rope to pull the fawn back to shore for good . The fawn , reportedly covered in ticks and suffering an eye injury , is recuperating at an animal rescue organization . Storm , meanwhile , is probably off fighting crime or solving math problems .
So , what does that have to do with anything , other than being a heartwarming story and taking its place among the thousands of cute animal videos online ? Stay with me .
It is September 20th as I am writing this . Just under a month ago , Hurricane Harvey made landfall in Texas . We watched the drama of unprecedented flooding as it unfolded on our tv screens . The destruction was widespread and massive . Just five days after Harvey found Houston , Hurricane Irma formed in the Atlantic — and did not dissipate until September 15th . In its path , there were resort islands completely destroyed and now uninhabited . Much of the Caribbean and then the state of Florida sustained significant damage to property and the environment as well as loss of life . And now this morning , category four Hurricane Maria — after destroying the island of Dominica ( over 70,000 residents )— is bringing massive destruction to Puerto Rico , much of which is still without power since Irma just 10 days earlier . continued on page 4
2 • The New Wine Press • October 2017