Whether they belong to more evolved species like humans or to simpler ones such as animals, all beings primarily seek peace, comfort, and security. Life is as dear to the mute animal as it is to any human being; even the simplest insect strives for protection from dangers that threaten its life.
--His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet
Put aside your
hatred and animosity. Take pains to refrain from sharp words. If they escape
your lips, do not be ashamed to let your lips produce the remedy, since they
have caused the wounds. Pardon one another so that later on you will not
remember the injury. The recollection of an injury is itself wrong. It adds to
our anger, nurtures our sin, and hates what is good. It is a rusty arrow and
poison for the soul. It puts all virtue to flight. It is like a worm in the
mind: it confuses our speech and tears to shreds our petitions to God. It is
foreign to charity: it remains planted in the soul like a nail. It is
wickedness that never sleeps, sin that never fails. It is indeed a daily death.
--St.
Francis of Paola
Today is the feast day of St. Francis of Paola, a Franciscan hermit of the fifteenth century. He founded a community of hermit mendicants that eventually became the Minimi (the least ones). And, in addition to establishing rules for friars and nuns, he created a “third order” for lay people. Though he was a hermit, he was eventually drawn into a more active life, preaching and ministering to people of all social classes, defending the poor and oppressed, and making peace between kingdoms. He was renowned for his humility and the austerity of his life, as well as his kindness and charity, which extended even to animals. There are tales of his performing miracles on behalf of his animal friends, including a fish! He was a strict vegan, as were all his fellow hermits. They kept a year-round Lenten fast, abstaining not only from meat but all animal products including milk, eggs, and cheese. Despite this, and the extreme austerity of his life (or perhaps because of it), he lived to be ninety-one-years-old.
Menschenbrüder, mit wem hadert ihr, wenn
euch ein kleines Ungemach geschieht? Mit einem Allweisen? O! ihr Kurzsichtigen!
On one occasion, two
youths went for a walk and found some snails on the roadway, which they threw
into the bush, afraid they might be crushed by a wagon. "You mischievous
ones," cried the snails, "why are you disturbing our peace and
wantonly throwing us about?"
Brothers and sisters, with whom do you
quarrel when a little trouble befalls you? With an All-Wise? Oh, you
short-sighted ones!
--Novalis, “Die Schnecken”
Because we are truly
children of God, we want to understand all things. But because we are obstinate children, we are
not willing to be taught. To perceive is
to know how little we know. Instead of
waiting for the story to unfold, we demand the climax on the first page. And when the train is traveling to strange and harsh and mysterious lands, we insist on getting off at the nearest stop.
Listen to me, my faithful children: open up your petals,
like roses planted near running waters;
Send up the sweet odor of incense,
break forth in blossoms like the lily.
Raise your voices in a chorus of praise;
bless the Lord for all his works!
Proclaim the greatness of his name,
loudly sing his praises,
With music on the harp and all stringed instruments;
sing out with joy as you proclaim:
The works of God are all of them good;
he supplies for every need in its own time.
--Sirach 39:13-16
Now, who is more worthy of such a cry of jubilation than God himself, whom all words fail to describe? If words will not serve, and yet you must not remain silent, what else can you do but cry out for joy? Your heart must rejoice beyond words, soaring into an immensity of gladness, unrestrained by syllabic bonds. Sing to him with jubilation.
--St. Augustine, A Commentary on Psalm 32
No, this picture is not upside down. The butterfly is hanging upside down.
I keep seeing what I think is the same American snout butterfly (Libytheana carinenta) in our front yard. I’m not sure what is attracting it, since there are no hackberry trees in our yard, and I don’t know of any nearby. It may just be drinking from the lantanas. I’ve heard that these butterflies can appear in great numbers during migrations in the fall. But this one seems to be alone (although there might be a few others around that I haven’t seen). At any rate, it’s not part of a mass migration, during which adult American snout butterflies can darken the sky with their numbers and their larvae can strip hackberry trees almost bare, though the trees usually make more leaves and recover. The elongated mouthparts (labial palpi) give this butterfly what looks like a giant nose. It’s one of my favorite butterflies, both for its strange appearance and its willingness to let the human viewer get up close to observe it.
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| I'm not sure why this butterfly is interested in these overripe lantana "berries," either. |
To most indigenous
thinking people, the United States is not a melting pot; it is a boiling mess.
No longer do we have the clear blue skies, but acid rain, maybe soon cyanide
and nuclear rain, destroying life on land and water. No longer clear cool waters,
but outrageous pollution destroying all forms of water life--believe it or not
folks, if we cannot drink our once clear blue waters, we are the next to go!
--Carrie and Mary Dann, Right
Livelihood Award acceptance speech
