By: Verónica Policarpo

The golden hour

Under the golden hour light, the green of the trees seems deeper and magical. It sparkles. We walk silently up a path covered with leaves from last Autumn’s season. There are footprints from wild boars, and we all bend to watch them closely, a mix of curiosity and fascination. We finally settle near a path leading to a thicker grove of trees. Ricardo Brandão, the coordinator of CERVAS, the Centro de Ecologia, Recuperação e Vigilância de Animais Selvagens, in Gouveia (central Portugal), lays down the box he carries. Inside, a small tawny owl crouches in motionless silence. This member of the Strix aluco family arrived at CERVAS a couple of months before, injured, where he was cared for by the center’s team. What does it mean to take care of another living being so that recovery from trauma and disaster is possible? How can we look into the marvel of another living being in their recovery process? How can we turn the awe we feel into humble learning?

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