Whale and Dolphin Desk Calendar: Those who love the vast whales and dolphins cannot accept a narrow love
Since 2012, Kuroshio has produced a charity desk calendar themed around whales and dolphins for two consecutive years, discussing ecology as well as the "love stories" of whales and dolphins. Whales and dolphins hold so much mystery and imagination for people; for Kuroshio, which has long observed and documented them, the hope is to share more diverse whale and dolphin stories with the public through our ocean experience.
In 2014, what we want to talk about is - captivity.
Perhaps it is too serious, but I think everyone is willing to believe that the longing to chase freedom is hidden in the soul of every living being. So when life is constrained and imprisoned, we all feel oppressed and despairing.
Speaking of the ocean, some may hesitate before the surging waves and see the sea as a barrier, yet they cannot suppress a heart continually stirred by the ocean and by whales and dolphins. To satisfy their curiosity, they may choose to go whale watching at sea, or they may step into a place like an amusement park. Whatever the experience, joy is certainly what most of us remember from the process. Yet in these different settings, behind the seemingly smiling expressions of whales and dolphins, we seem to have overlooked some subtle and nameless sorrow.
That day, from a packed audience stand, I saw a bottlenose dolphin that seemed like the conductor of an entire orchestra: with just a gentle leap, all the adults and children burst into delighted applause and laughter. As for how it came here to perform, and the life story of this group of bottlenose dolphins, like me in the crowd, it was hidden away. We have almost all forgotten to think about the sorrow of captive whales and dolphins, torn from their original landscape, forced to assimilate into the socialization of the city - freedom is not only what they have lost, but also what we, who regard the ocean as a dangerous forbidden zone, have lost together.
This is not a condemnation, or an attack. We hope Kuroshio can be a wave surging onto the shore, hoping to offer different angles of thought and vision by sharing the natural appearance of wild whales and dolphins. If in the waves of 2014, action to care for the ocean and for whales and dolphins begins, then that is precisely the practice that emerges after experiences are gathered and exchanged. Let us share together the memories of whales and dolphins in our lives, and at the same time feel whether the love we speak of for whales and dolphins is complete and firm.
Kuroshio anti-captivity timeline:
In 2006, in response to the aquarium's purchase of beluga whales, together with multiple groups it issued a press release titled "Let the beluga whales return to the ocean and reunite with their families." In 2012, it took part in the Life Conservation Association's press conference on "Friendly animal tourism: reject animal mockery." In 2013, together with the Taiwan Animal Society Research Association, it jointly launched "Missing the ocean - a fish tank is not its home!" urging the aquarium to release the captive whale shark back into the wild, conveying the public belief that "no wild animal should be kept in captivity for human entertainment, and all animals currently held in captivity should receive proper care," and presented related arguments in the "Kuroshio E-Newsletter."
Kuroshio E-Newsletter Issue 73: The freedom and wholeness you long for - has it remained unchanged all along?
Kuroshio E-Newsletter Issue 78: We walked together through the blue light of life, yet arrived alone in the valley of death.
E-newsletter website: http://enews.url.com.tw/kuroshio.shtml
——————————————————————————————————–
A Kuroshio production [2014: I Only Want to Meet You in the Sea] desk calendar preorder
(Only 500 copies, while supplies last.)
"The eyes can express far more than language ever can."
Though we have no language between us that allows clear communication
When we meet
Please gaze into our eyes
You will feel the thousands of words flowing between our gazes
And also our souls
Hoping that captivity can end
And that we can freely share the ocean with people
For the full contents of the desk calendar, visit the official website:
http://www.kuroshio.org.tw/index.php?load=read&id=553
Online preorder:
https://fellowship.eoffering.org.tw/offering.php?offering=general&op=offeringitem&orgid=10