Thinking Outloud - Animals, Hurricanes, and 9/11

living.boondockingmexico@yahoo.com

When I can't get out and boondock, my mind starts to wander. So here goes. Today I heard three different conversations but all with the same theme in mind.

1) A friend at the gym works as a volunteer in an animal shelter. He says he has seen it all. Dogs that have been splashed with gasoline and set on fire, dogs raped by men, animals with their privates, feet or tails chopped off, and the list goes on. A bit graphic but reality. So if we treat animals like that, how can we expect to treat humans any better. I am sure there is a study somewhere that shows where those who mistreat animals turn out to be criminals and treat humans in the same fashion.

2) The hurricane. Watching the news the last 24 hours I have heard people say, "my prayers have been answered and the hurricane is headed somewhere else". Isn't that wonderful. You prayed hard enough that the powers that be turned the hurricane to spare you and then to destroy someone else. Do prayers and the amount of them really make a difference? Does the one above look down and say, "wow, they really like me so I'll save them, and those that don't pay much attention to me, I'll take care of them". Revenge?

3) Today is the annivesary of 9/11. Believe me, no one was more devastated than I was on that tragic day. It happened to us for the first time in a long time. Many people lost their lives, many suffer the consequences of that horrific day. But can we put it to rest? How much more can we drag it out? Let it go, no one will ever forget. Move on, heal, find solace in the fact that we let our guard down and since then have taken all the necessary precautions to not let it happen again. Life is for the living, don't forget the past, but don't dwell on it either. Many other peoples in many other countries throughout history have suffered the same if not worse. It's time to let go, remember our loved ones but the wounds need to heal but never will if we continue to focus on the negative.

Trust me, I have some distant but close experience considering I have no relatives on my father's side of the family. They were all killed in WWII. Even that event needs to be remembered, don't forget but move ahead. It is a tool for healing, learning and preparing for the future.