Chill; Just a pissed VULTURE

Today, something from my past returned and it made me happy for no reason at all.

What should I see after work today but a vulture.
A VULTURE!!!

I’ve not seen a vulture in over 12 years.
My immediate reaction was “OMG, there’s a vulture 👉🏿, I’ve not seen one in like forever 😁.”
My colleague probably wondered what was wrong with me to get that excited over a vulture.

It was a beautiful healthy looking hooded vulture. It appeared tense, like it’d fly away if we got closer even though we weren’t that close nor heading towards it. Its pink head was also redder.
I doubt the vulture noticed me beyond seeing me as a potentially dangerous moving object.
But it evoked warm feelings inside me and occupied my thoughts till I let them out in writing.

Growing up in Koforidua, there were lots of vultures at our dump site. I mean a LOT of them.
There were so many that we called the school close to their location ‘Christ Opete’. I can’t remember what actually came after Christ in the school’s name🤣.
Opete/Pete is how we call vultures in Twi.

I don’t recall having any particular preferences for the vultures back then. They were just there, a  part of the space. I did not care for them, liked nor hated them.

The general view on vultures in Ghana isn’t that positive. They are unclean birds that eat literal shit and are taboo for humans to eat. I believe having them visit your home often will be foreboding of uncertain doom.

I left Koforidua 12 years ago, but way before I left, the vulture population had declined significantly. I don’t think I saw a vulture in at least 2 years prior to my leaving Koforidua.

I recall at some point, some youngsters got arrested for killing vultures. They were arrested not because the community cared so much about protecting and conserving the vultures, but because they were selling the vulture meat to street food vendors as chicken.
Fried rice as a street food(we called it ‘check check’)was just getting popular and I remember at least 2 of my favorite ‘check check’ joints got exposed for intentionally selling vultures as chicken. One of my fufu joints was also exposed for the same deception.
You can imagine people getting fumed, and all food vendors suffered for a bit as people tried to avoid eating from outside.

It would be several years later till I learned about how the decline of vultures has negatively impacted our environment. Apparently they are very important. Someone needs to get rid of all the dead and rotten things for us.

When I saw the hooded vulture today, I was immediately excited at the fact that I was seeing something that I’d not seen in so long again. I immediately remembered Koforidua and all the vultures there were.

Being who I am, I look for meanings in things even when I logically acknowledge it doesn’t mean anything.
Because my immediate reaction to the vulture was that of excitement, I like to think it is a positive sign for me. As to what is to be positive in my life, I have no idea lol.

Vultures also represent death since they usually appear wherever there’s a carcass. I personally view death positively as a representation of rebirths, endings and new beginnings.
I’m still in an energy where literal death is also very welcome and something to excite me should it be for me.

My excitement over the sighting of the vulture though is steeped in the return of something from so long ago.
As someone that is not necessarily fond of reconnecting with people or things I’ve moved on from, it’s a little baffling why a return from the past  would excite me so.

At the same time, I may know why I reacted so.
But seeing that it was a vulture, something seen as bad culturally, should anything return from my past, though it might excite me, would it be positive for me? Or would it bring me uncertain doom?

I wish I took a picture of the one I saw today

PS: the University of Ghana campus is a paradise for bird watchers. You’d spot so many different birds without even trying.