Three and a half years ago when I was driving home from my volunteer job at Animal Edventure, I noticed a small abandoned farmhouse. Its clapboards had long ago lost any paint that had adorned them. The house stands back about thirty feet off the road. Behind the house are two outbuildings crumbling to the ground. The fields behind lie fallow.  On the edge of a road in front of the old house grows a large stand of Prickly Pear Cactus. Oh, I thought I would love to have one of those in my front yard where I get the sun all day.

Abandoned House with Cactus

I decide the next time I come to Animal Edventure on my way home, I’ll stop and cut a couple of pads off. It just so happen that my husband came with me that day to repair some equipment at the sanctuary. On our way home, we pull over in front of the house and park. I  brought some newspapers and a small serrated saw. We cut off two pads and were on our way.

When I arrive home I place the pads in our small greenhouse to heal over. In the meantime we prepare a berm with a mixture of sand, soil, and gravel.

Two weeks later I planted the pads in the berm and happily, they rooted. Over the next two years the cactus flourished. In the second year, several flowers bloom. This year it’s in full bloom.  It reminds me that we can start from a single seed, and in time we will have a fragrant flower or a flowering tree that bears fruit—given time care and effort. Nature can fill an empty space with life.

Photo by Bob Culver

Nature has the ability to recover from catastrophic events. In Australia it has been observed that some of the forests are recovering after being ravaged by fire. There are signs of regrowth across much of eastern Australia. But, we know that if we do not change our ways and stop depleting our planet of all its’ resources. If we continue to pollute the land, the water, and the air. Climate change will continue and worsen. There will be more fires.

Right now at this moment we’re facing challenges that no one in the past one hundred years had to face.  A virus that seems to be intent on eliminating human life from the planet earth. We have the opportunity right now to make choices that protect our fellow man, woman, and child. If we all work together as one, we can and will find an anti-viral to protect any further people from becoming infected. It can limit the number of lives that are lost. People have been unable to work and earn a living. Some people are going hungry. Their basic needs are not being met. We are losing our loved ones, especially older people whose immune systems are unable to fight against this virus. We must acknowledge that all people’s lives have value. No matter their age or if they are rich or poor.

A single flower can bring joy to someone’s life, An older person brings wisdom and experience. All people are capable of making a contribution. Children are the future. We must protect everyone. Every single being is unique and they can not be replaced.

One day in the future humanity will look back at how we handled this experience. And hopefully, they will be able to say people did their best, we valued all people’s lives, they took care of the poor and disenfranchised. Everyone worked together for the benefit of all.

If you reflect on what is going on right now is this the behavior you are seeing? If not, why not? We can all take a step in the right direction. It is not too late. Do the right thing. We all know what it is, we have to make a choice. And you do have the ability to choose right over wrong. Generosity over selfishness. Love over hate.

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