Respect for life

As a boy growing up on a ranch in the Sandhills of Nebraska, life was real and honest; or brutal some would say. Almost on a daily basis there was both life and death. Mom and Dad had Banty chickens which seemed to love to "sit" on a batch of eggs and hatch them out. When a chicken gets the urge to hatch out some eggs she "sits." Nothing cuter than a small Banty hen and a whole brood of baby chicks. But on the same day Mom or Dad may catch an old hen, chop off her head, clean and dress her and Mom made chicken and noodles for supper. Life and death were common. But even as common as life and death were there was a respect for life. I've watched Dad struggle to save a calf that was having trouble being born. Granted there was a financial incentive, but I really think the biggest part was a want to save the calf. Respect for life.

Most people have a tender spot in their hearts for animals. I've lost a few precious pets, dogs and cats and horses, and I've shed tears. That sorrow tears down to the innermost part of one's heart. It hurts. But as I was thinking about how it hurts to lose our pets, it even bothers Marge and I when we tote off our steers every year to the butcher.

While my mind was wandering around I wondered why God kept two of every kind by placing them in the ark so they wouldn't drown. Scripture says He kept them to replenish the earth. True. But I still wonder if God doesn't have a tender spot in his heart for critters of every kind and description. The Bible mentions how God is concerned about even the sparrow. When God created us He imprinted in our heart a special spot of love for critters and such!

Fast forward to today. There still is a love for critters. No-kill shelters are found in almost every city. Pretty much weekly there are ads on TV reaching out to the public to adopt a pet. There has been a great uproar over the deaths of the race horses because of injuries.

But at the same time in an increasing amount there seems to be so little empathy towards human life. Shootings or stabbings or vehicular homicides are common. Deaths attributed to drugs are common with some probably accidental but other's maybe because of "who cares." Random shootings and killings seem to be common. It almost seems like we have a generation or two that has no compassion for the poor, the downtrodden, the sick, the different or the unaccepted. It almost seems like those committing brutal acts are getting younger and younger. It's like life has no value.

So what's the answer? I honestly don't know for sure. One thing that seems to be true most of the time is that tender-hearted parents raise tender-hearted kids. Kids who grow up with dogs or cats or pets or critters will likely have them as well. Our government seems to throw money at problems with the idea there is a quick fix. I don't think there is a quick fix. It probably will take generations.

What if schools were rewarded for having pets in the classrooms? Let's say a class of 5th graders with 20 students has five dogs. Maybe even shelter dogs. After learning how to feed and water and potty the dogs maybe even allow the dogs to go home with the students. I'm betting lives would be changed forever. Maybe rabbits instead of dog. Or Guiney pigs. I'd help with something like this.

I think it's time to think out of the box: in our schools, in our homes, in our Churches and in our cities. Not change the message but the means.