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Page 1, 2 Anyone who has ever worked with animals, particularly with formerly abused or neglected animals, has observed their capacity for adaptability, their ability to forget their former lives and to respond to love. Many of these animals come to us with "baggage," and after a certain amount of reliable good care, they display little evidence of their former lives. Most animals even have the capacity to adapt following a medical trauma, such as amputation of a limb, and most throw themselves back into life as successfully on three legs as they once did on four. As they age, they do what they can do until they can't do anymore. Animals live in the here and now, they live for the moment. They don't spend time brooding about the past, they don't worry about the future, and except in the face of clear and present danger, they aren't concerned about their own mortality. Animals are honest. When they are happy they make the appropriate noises and they play. A warning growl is a warning to be heeded. A cry of pain means genuine pain. A lick and a caress mean affection and trust. There is no duplicity in their world and what you see is what you get. Animals nurture their young and their lives and world revolve around their young until their young are able to go out into the world on their own, well prepared for everything they will face. Animals respect seniority and realize that their mature members have much to teach. For many animals, their lifelong relationship with their mate will be the most important relationship they will have. Animals never ignore their own needs, they achieve balance and pursue nothing to excess. When they are hungry, they hunt or forage and eat, and they always eat what is appropriate. Because they balance nutrition and exercise, they are almost always fit. When they are tired they sleep. They pay attention to their grooming and most help to groom each other, partly for hygiene, partly as a ritual of companionship. Animals divide their day and their activities according to what it must be for them, what is good for each as an individual, what is good for all as a whole. They rebel against confinement, they own the world and they want access to it. There is no confusion in the animal world. A foe, prey, a friendly fellow species are all immediately apparent and most are able to drink together at a common watering hole. Animals communicate constantly and effectively. Every member of their group is at all times completely informed about the moods and needs of each member, and their present situation in their environment. When they want company, they seek it; when they want to be alone, they remove themselves from the group. There are no meaningless social graces in the animal world, every movement and action has meaning. There is no insincerity. They have maximized their senses and they drink information from the world around them. Animals are innocent. They don't ravage the Earth. They don't hate or plot the annihilation of another species. They don't take more than they need of resources. They don't jeopardize their own survival and they accept what they cannot change. Animals don't agonize over the existence of a Creator, or how the world came to be >>> Page 1, 2 Copyright Jim Willis 2001 - Used With Permission Click here for other works by Jim Willis featured on this site Back to Viewer Viewpoint Table of Contents Do
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