Recently Robine and I had a traumatic experience where she found one of our young goat friends very sick. Within a few hours she was writhing in pain and ultimately had to be euthanized. It was a terrible day and the only solace I found was that I got to be with my friend Jane and hold her during those hours and simply be loving until she died. And to support my human friend Robine while she was in it as well.
The reason this story was so profound in my own life was because after I went home, I was pretty traumatized, my whole body was overwhelmed with sadness and Robine was as well. BUT I heard the voice in my head trying to tell me not to make such a big deal of it, that I should be able to manage this, etc. and I absolutely KNEW if it was a human friend or beloved dog, we had just experienced that with, everyone around us would have been mourning, calling and supporting us through a terrible event.
But alas, it was a farm animal. And so, I watched my own life long deep-seated biases arise that somehow this shouldn’t hurt as much 😢 and yet… it did.
Our beliefs and biases towards farmed animals are deep. We learn at a young age to objectify them and dismiss them. And those beliefs get deeply embedded in our cells. It comes from all angles - parents, media, society, doctors, schools with AG backed food programs, etc. We slowly kill off the part of us that knows in our cells that all living beings deserve kindness and love and that we are more whole when we do that.
I guess my point is that we can be conscious and aware and change when we see these harmful ways that we make “others” less than us not worthy of kindness and love. We can question our beliefs and what others have told us - regardless of how long these beliefs have been embedded. We can look at our stories about those we objectify and pay attention- us humans can always change for the better. We can make new choices and appreciate ourselves and others for being kinder and more thoughtful.
What beliefs and biases do you hold about farmed animals that you are willing to examine and disrupt?
- Kelly
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