Mutual Amazing Healing between Eagle and Human

[Guest guest]

Jeff Guidry with Freedom

 

When Freedom came in she could not stand. Both wings were broken, her

left wing in four places. She was emaciated and covered in lice. We made

the decision to give her a chance at life, so I took her to the vet's

office. From then on, I was always around her. We had her in a huge dog

carrier with the top off, and it was loaded up with shredded newspaper

for her to lay in. I used to sit and talk to her, urging her to live, to

fight; and she would lay there looking at me with those big brown eyes.

We also had to tube feed her for weeks.

This went on for 4-6 weeks, and by then she still couldn't stand. It got

to the point where the decision was made to euthanize her if she

couldn't stand in a week. You know you don't want to cross that line

between torture and rehab, and it looked like death was winning. She was

going to be put down that Friday, and I was supposed to come in on that

Thursday afternoon. I didn't want to go to that center that Thursday,

because I couldn't bear the thought of her being euthanized; but I went

anyway, and when I walked in everyone was grinning from ear to ear. I

went immediately back to her dowl cage; and there she was, standing on

her own, a big beautiful eagle. She was ready to live. I was just about

in tears by then. That was a very good day.

We knew she could never fly, so the director asked me to glove train

her. I got her used to the glove, and then to jesses, and we started

doing education programs for schools in western Washington. We wound up

in the newspapers, radio (believe it or not) and some TV. Miracle Pets

even did a show about us.

In the spring of 2000, I was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. I had

stage 3, which is not good (one major organ plus everywhere), so I wound

up doing 8 months of chemo. Lost the hair – the whole bit. I missed

a lot of work. When I felt good enough, I would go to Sarvey and take

Freedom out for walks. Freedom would also come to me in my dreams and

help me fight the cancer. This happened time and time again.

Fast forward to November 2000, the day after Thanksgiving, I went in for

my last checkup. I was told that if the cancer was not all gone after

eight rounds of chemo, then my last option was a stem cell transplant.

Anyway, they did the tests; and I … went in Monday and I was told

that all the cancer was gone.

 

So the first thing I did was get up to Sarvey and took the big girl out

for a walk. It was misty and cold. I went to her flight and jessed her

up, and we went out front to the top of the hill. I hadn't said a word

to Freedom, but somehow she knew. She looked at me and wrapped both her

wings around me to where I could feel them pressing in on my back (I was

engulfed in eagle wings), and she touched my nose with her beak and

stared into my eyes, and we just stood there like that for I don't know

how long. That was a magic moment. We have been soul mates ever since

she came in. this is a very special bird.

On a side note, I have had people who were sick come up to us when we

were out, and Freedom has some kind of hold on them. I once had a guy

who was terminal come up to us and I let him hold her. His knees just

about buckled and he swore he could feel her power coarse through his

body. I have so many stories like that. I never forget the honor I have

of being so close to a magnificent spirit as Freedom's.

 

Jeff Guidry and Freedom are at the Sarvey Wildlife Center.

http://www.sarveywildlife.org/Story.aspx?id=7

<http://www.sarveywildlife.org/Story.aspx?id=7>

 

As of 2008, according to sources, Jeff Guidry and Freedom have been

together since 1998 (when she came in with broken wings and near death).

Their story can be read in an article written by Jeff Guidry (the email

is a short story Jeff sent via email). The name of his article is The

Circle of Healing <http://www.sarveywildlife.org/Story.aspx?id=7> .