On The Value of Connections

and Southern Alligator Lizards

Peering through the vegetable garden

I spend a good deal of time in nature, both walking through wilderness areas and tending to my city-lot-sized plot, where we’ve maximized planting space with raised beds, tiered gardens, trellises, and plenty of large pots. I grow citrus, figs, loquats, herbs, vegetables, perennials that attract butterflies and birds, and lots of annual color. Creatures of all sizes honor me with their persistent presence.

Nearly a year ago, at summer's end, a mature Southern Alligator Lizard became entangled in the wheels of a large garbage cart. He lost his tail, which wasn’t a problem, as they’re regenerative, but he also suffered a spinal injury that left him seemingly paralyzed on one side.

I lifted the bleeding creature from the walkway and set him in my raised garden box, thinking he would soon die, and the ants would do what ants are wont to do. But he lived!

I checked on him every day, not touching him, just observing. His bleeding wounds healed, and his tail began to grow again, albeit much more slowly than it would have in a healthy specimen. He moved around in the raised bed, safe from predatory raccoons, birds, squirrels (yes—they eat lizards!), and opossums.

During winter, I lowered him to a nearby rocky area where he could find sun and shelter from the damp and cold. The tail grew oh-so-slowly. Each morning, I would check and discover he had moved a few inches in a curling, circling fashion to lounge in the sun. By dusk, he would have found shelter among the heat-emanating stones.

Twice a day, I checked, speaking softly, encouraging his bravery and recovery. I felt both silly and deeply connected as I reported back to The Good Husband. Then, one evening—nine months after I first lifted him into the bed—I found him on his back, his body cooling as the sun dipped down.

This morning, weeks after I bid him farewell, I checked his domain, wondering how much longer I will feel compelled to do so.

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Have you experienced deep connections to something wild and wonderful? Share your story in the comments!