“Hello babies. Welcome to Earth. It’s hot in the summer and cold in the winter. It’s round and wet and crowded. At the outside, babies, you’ve got about 100 years here. There’s only one rule that I know of, babies – God damn it, you’ve got to be kind.” Kurt Vonnegut
Last week Sean called me upset because a small bird was dying on our front walkway. As soon as he noticed the bird struggling he came into the house and looked online to see how to save it and who to call to come rescue it. By the time he went outside the bird was dead with its feet up in the air. The teeny-tiny bird broke Sean’s heart a little.
Being a witness to pain in animals triggers something very deep inside of me. How we treat everything on this fragile planet is a direct reflection of who we are. I love the quote above from Vonnegut. Love, love it. In 2014 I plan on becoming more of an animal activist and spreading kindness.
Animal activism comes in all forms. I am inspired by so many people and groups. Right now, several artists have blown me away with their work. I am motivated by their creativity and kindness, I hope that they inspire you too:
This video promoting animal rescue from Moby motivates and influences me. I think I have watched it 25 times. T-bone, I wish I could come adopt you right now!
I am in love with by Shannon Johnstone’s project Landfill Dogs. Her work demonstrates the power of art as she highlights our disposable society where we are careless about animals and we generate tons of junk that ends up in a landfill. Her work has led to many lives saved because the dogs she highlights are usually adopted. Please check out her site and her work.
Jo-Anne McArthur is another hero of mine. The objective of her work is: “to photograph our interactions with animals in such a way that the viewer finds new significance in these ordinary, often unnoticed situations of use, abuse and sharing of spaces.” She has many different projects on her website and they are all thought-provoking.
The documentary “Blackfish” horrified me. I am disgusted that I ever went to Sea World, and I think anyone that watches the movie will feel the same way. The documentary changed the way I will see wild animals in captivity forever. It must be watched and talked about, because there is no reason to keep whales in fish tanks. Please watch it.
“The Ghosts in our Machine” is another documentary about animals that I am so glad exists. As soon as I can, I will be watching the documentary.
These artistic statements have inspired me over the last few months. They give us a vision of another kind of future. I plan on moving towards that ideal by doing something this year that will inspire others to think about how we treat animals. I’ll keep you updated.
My Big Red Glasses 