Baron and Madge RIP
Don Bradley July 12, 2026
Below, son Naphesh on left, then Baron and wife Madge.
I miss my friend.
I can only write about this now.
About 5 weeks ago in early June, I called out to Baron – no show. This kept happening over a few days. I had seen the fight.
Madge was on the nest, as she does every spring, and a hawk had landed and Baron went in to attack, to push the hawk away. I had seen this before, and the flock usually prevails. But, I was told that Baron was killed in the battle, Madge too, and the eggs consumed by this hawk.
They both died. I recall that afternoon, all the ravens were gone to a funeral, which happens every month or so for someone. You can talk about the dead for 3 days, but after that, in their raven culture, it is rude to speak of them after the 3 days. They then put the dead out of their minds and get on with their lives. Raven culture. You have remember, ravens have the human intelligence level of a 10 year old, which can be and is, pretty intelligent.
So, here and there, I would call out to my friend. No show, ever again.
The hawk was a stranger in the area, not one of the 4 hawks that understand the rules of the area between hawks and ravens – a kind of peace treaty. One I asked them to try, live and let live. They did and got on well. Happily.
For my part, every time I see a raven in Baron's old perching spot – he had a few – I want to cry in remembrance. He had made such an impact upon me, arriving one month after I had moved in here. He's been my friend ever since. Any time I wanted to talk with him, I just called out BARON!, and within seconds he would appear, perch on his spot and nod to me. Then we would chat. If I called out BARON ONLY, any others would leave, just him and I being alone. This I did to communicate flock things, I knew he would prefer to handle in his own Raven way. You know, don't crap on the deck, they never did; don't eat any cat food, same, it was left alone. Keep an eyes on the cats whom will not attack you, protect them; they did, quite often in fact. Like that. My girls never attacked any ravens. Very often, they would hang out together, a few feet apart.
See, it's like this. Baron and I go waaaaaay back. Thousands of years in fact. If you will have it. I will tell it, whether you do or not.
Baron used to feed me. Many, many times. When I needed food in the wilderness or because that bish had put a price on my head, making it impossible to go into a town, without laying waste to it with fire, because everyone wanted to get rich on my bones. You see the problem. Here Baron would be, twice a day, with food and bread, Obadiah was making daily because our Heavenly Father in a dream told him to prepare the food, and put it out on a table to be retrieved. He did, I ate, via Baron. Then, Baron and Madge, his wife in those days, even back then. So whenever I was starving to death and HAD NO MONEY like now to pay my bills, Dad would send Baron to feed me.
This whole thing in this time with Baron and Madge was circular recompense. I had for the last 3 years, been feeding them, and their flock, in gratitude for all those times, he was there for me. I also made 60 new friends, have been learning tons about the whole aviary thing and ravens in particular, enough to write a pretty lengthy essay on the ongoing experience.
I miss my friend.
Don
Baron was an angel, as he was 2,900 years ago. Angels love using aviary bodies for work, being messenger spirits. Cats, dogs, birds, horses...yep, for some people, it's an angelic spirit from heaven. Which means, I get to see Baron and Madge again.
In fact, many of you get angels that way. Just when you need it. I've got bazillions of great stories to share about ministering spirits that have come through doves, ravens, many types of birds, deer, skunks, cats, dogs, horses, etc.
