Poems and Thoughts    by Frank Maurer

[Return to Poems and Thoughts index page]

A Ceremony Over an Opossum Skull. Humans have tended their dead over centuries in many ways: Some burned, some left for the vultures, Some buried in several configurations. Are these customs instinctual, or learned through culture? Well, I was walking around my pond the day after Thanksgiving With my son, Pierre, and his son, my grandson, Rowan. We watched wild turkeys in the sun, with their exploding iridescent colors; We munched on the desert jojoba seeds, from shrubs transplanted to the farm. Suddenly we came upon an opossum skull buried in the grass. Rowan was immediately mesmerized, as we pointed out its morphology. Quickly Rowan commenced pulling out neighboring grass blades And tenderly laying these herbs over the skull. He repeated this ritual several times, until we moved on. As we were observing things farther from the opossum, Rowan turned and walked all the way back to the burial site. He then proceeded to pull more grass, further covering the skull, Then returned to us to continue our observations. He repeated this maneuver thrice more in the exact same way. So sweet to see--a tiny four year old boy, Crouching over an opossum grave, which he was helping to lay to rest. It was then that the original question (from above) came to me-- Is this an innate behavior or something that just must be done? I shudder thinking about the profundity of this query. My mind drifts back to the time when Homo sapiens Intermingled with Neanderthals, each species interacting differently As to what is now known from their early cave habits. It seems the Neanderthals possibly 'taught' Homo sapiens how to bury their dead. I revel in the new knowledge we are gleaning From modern technology and methodology. But it seems my question still remains in the ether around us. Frank Maurer 30 November 2024 1200 Hours.