Abandonment
I was at Whole Foods Market this evening, and there was an orange tabby cat in the parking lot, dodging cars. Not a good place for a cat to be, but perhaps better than being on the busy streets surrounding Whole Foods. He was sniffing at everything on the ground, looking for food. I followed him around for a while, trying to get him to come to me, but he was not interested. He must be a stray. I pondered my options. Try to catch him, and possibly scare him into the street. Call animal control, let them catch him, and euthanize him. Buy him a can of cat food, thus encouraging him to frequent the Whole Foods parking lot. None of them sounded very good, so I left and did nothing. He looked OK, not like he was starving, but I'm sure his life is not an easy one. I felt bad because there was nothing I could do to rescue him from his suffering.
Here I am, living in the most decadent society in the world, shopping at Whole Foods for the very best in organic and healthy foods, when millions of people and animals don't have anything to eat at all. I don't even want to eat the food that I bought. I feel guilty and sad.
Someone once told me, but I can't remember who, that I am unwilling to allow others to suffer. I especially can't stand to see animals suffer, or at least animals that I imagine to be suffering. I don't know for sure if this cat was suffering or not. We all suffer in one way or another, and it is said, by some spiritual teachers, that it is through our suffering that we learn and grow. I can't rescue every suffering being, nor is it right, according to these teachers, for me to rescue someone from their suffering. By doing so, I deny them the opportunity to learn and to grow. But it's hard to see what this cat, or anyone who is hungry, is learning from that experience.
It's at times like these that I hate the way the world is set up. I hate that animals kill other animals. I hate that some animals starve. It seems like a cruel and unfriendly place, and at times like these, I don't want any part of it at all.
Here I am, living in the most decadent society in the world, shopping at Whole Foods for the very best in organic and healthy foods, when millions of people and animals don't have anything to eat at all. I don't even want to eat the food that I bought. I feel guilty and sad.
Someone once told me, but I can't remember who, that I am unwilling to allow others to suffer. I especially can't stand to see animals suffer, or at least animals that I imagine to be suffering. I don't know for sure if this cat was suffering or not. We all suffer in one way or another, and it is said, by some spiritual teachers, that it is through our suffering that we learn and grow. I can't rescue every suffering being, nor is it right, according to these teachers, for me to rescue someone from their suffering. By doing so, I deny them the opportunity to learn and to grow. But it's hard to see what this cat, or anyone who is hungry, is learning from that experience.
It's at times like these that I hate the way the world is set up. I hate that animals kill other animals. I hate that some animals starve. It seems like a cruel and unfriendly place, and at times like these, I don't want any part of it at all.
posted by Cassandra at 7:18 PM
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