I suppose it isn’t a bad compromise. It is the one that works after all. The bear doesn’t poop in my yard and I can feed birds if I take in the feeders at night and when I’m not home.
But what is the real price I pay for this compromise? I can’t sit in the yard even in the middle of the day because bears have no respect for time of day.
I had to make the compromise because the other choice is to kill the bear somehow which is abhorrent to me and illegal. Life with wildlife.
But what have I given up? Some friends won’t come visit me because they’re afraid the bear will be there. I don’t feel comfortable eating food out in the yard because the bear might be there. I don’t take walks in the woods behind the house because I know the bear is there. Still I made a compromise. I can still put out bird feeders for a few hours a day. Kind of too bad that the cats can’t enjoy their birdytv as much as they used to. Perhaps the bears got too much in this deal?
It made me wonder what I compromise with humans. Perhaps I have to rethink some compromises? Is it really worth it if I have to change my lifestyle, change traditions that are cherished, change what I look like, not show what I feel, never show me, never change me? If I don’t make those compromises, would they rip apart my bird feeders and poop in my yard?
We must answer these questions ourselves as we go. Sometimes we may able to rework the compromise agreements or totally walk away. How far do you go to keep the peace?
