Musings: Witnessing the Incredible

Sitting in the midst of a racket of mynah chatter and soughing of warm wind through big trees, I think of a friend who likes to affect obliviousness; a facade that is often betrayed by his actions, such as when he wisely declined to view a video clip I sent him about how horribly animals are abused in labs — “I can't watch that stuff,” he said — and instead emailed me a link, under the apt subject heading: response to animal testing.

I watched the video in a state of awe that increased as it progressed — did you see the bat (a mammal, just like us) carrying a baby when it came in to feed? — until at the end, all I could think was, wow, we humans are so lucky to be a part of this world. Can't we start treating it a little bit better?

And then I decided, I'm not gonna post the link to the animal testing video. It's just too tempting to look, and why sicken ourselves with documentations of our depravity when we can nourish our souls and psyches by witnessing the incredible web of life?

All you really need to know is Mars engages in animal testing — as do all these companies — and the video was so disturbing you'll never eat another M&M, Snickers, Twix, Dove, Three Musketeers, Starburst or Skittles. Take my word for it.