We are the arrogant animals, the out-of-step ones—
the ego-driven, tantrum-throwing destructive ones.
We are the prideful animals and the delusional animals all at once.
While a deer is busy being its noninvasive self, we are busy
invading other humans or defending ourselves from human invaders.
At this moment, as I write, somewhere a lion is busy killing
another animal in order to feed itself and its family
while we are busy composing beautiful music and killing
other humans in order to … I’m sorry, why is it we are
always killing other humans?
Of course the Book says that the first son of man murdered
the second son of man. So what did we expect?
Some among us believe we are the guardians of this planet.
They tell us they know what is best for us all—that they know
what fish should live where, and what grass should grow where,
and which humans should live where, and I suspect that soon
when they "evolve" a little more, they will denounce God for
allowing volcanoes to erupt and they will attempt to prevent
Him from doing any more of His great and diverse mischief.
We have had hundreds of thousands of years to improve—
to modify our violent natures—and we have failed miserably
to do so. Yet because we are the delusional animals,
we don’t really think about things like that too often.
Instead, we imagine ourselves to be a species apart—
a non-animal species of an infinitely superior nature.
As proof we direct each other to consider the wonders
of our truly magnificent deeds and accomplishments.
We enshrine our DaVincis and Einsteins in order
to reassure ourselves that we are the intelligent species,
the evolved species, far removed from the animals.
Of course, as needs be, we fail to earnestly consider
the all-too-human contradictions inherent in our
DaVincis and Einsteins. While we loudly and repeatedly
laud the remarkable accomplishments of these icons
of human superiority, we quietly and easily demote their
other contributions — DaVinci’s advanced weaponry designs
and the first most urgent consequence of Einstein’s e = mc2 —
apocalyptic death and destruction, which proved beyond any doubt
that we are far more efficient killers than all other creatures on this planet.
Yet, in our fleeting moments of unadorned self-appraisal
we wise and superior guardians of the planet are obliged
to accept the unspoiled truth that we can't even make a leaf.
Copyright © 2005 Robert D. McKinley
All rights reserved.