The Power and Promise of Humane Education
Above All, Be Kind: Raising a Humane Child in Challenging Times
Claude and Medea: The Hellburn Dogs
So, You Love Animals: An Action-Packed, Fun-Filled Book to Help Kids Help Animals
In July, I wrote about my intention to get a tattoo, and on August 22, I found myself in a tattoo parlor with my 18-year-old son, watching a Star Trek episode on my laptop in order to endure the hour of pain as I did something so utterly and bizarrely out of character. As I’ve pondered for two weeks about what I wanted to write about the experience on my blog, I found that I would either need to write a chapter-length account, or just share a poem. I’ve chosen the latter, my ode to my new tattoo.
They say you become more of who you are as you age
(neural pathways so deeply etched it would take a deluge to shift them),
and boy is that true
as I try not to react to every trigger
even faster than the last.
So how can I explain a big tattoo on my back?
Me, of all people,
who swore I’d never,
ever,
get a tattoo.
Me with a coward’s tolerance to pain
(who can moan and complain about a paper cut and has to hum audibly when getting a shot)
under the gun for a godawful hour
to stain my skin
with a permanent mark
of transformation (there’s the rub)
A luna moth has alit on my spine,
a spine that caused me no end of grief for thirty years,
and then mysteriously stopped hurting;
A luna moth,
caterpillar dissolving into genetic goo
to emerge completely changed,
a reminder that this DNA does not mean
we’re stuck forever in our ever deepening ruts;
A luna moth who lives for one week,
(only to mate and reproduce, without even a digestive tract);
just joy and beauty for a brief, gorgeous present.
Imagine that.
A brief, gorgeous present
permanently etched on my back.
Zoe Weil, President, Institute for Humane Education
Author of Most Good, Least Harm, Above All, Be Kind, and The Power and Promise of Humane Education
My TEDx talk: “The World Becomes What You Teach”
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Filed under: gratitude | Tagged: change, gifts, gratitude, Joy, luna moths, poems, tattoos, transformation | Comments Off
After a day of meetings and before one more evening meeting, I scooted out after dinner to kayak at low tide. The sun was setting and the clouds were pink in the western sky. The loons were making their eerie calls. I slid my kayak into the ocean and slowly paddled, staring into the shallow water to watch the drama unfolding below me. Crabs were battling, frilly worms were swaying like anemones, fish were schooling around me, tiny sea stars were clinging to little rocks and giant sea stars to big ones. Seals were bobbing their heads to look at me as I looked at them, both of us curious.
Recently, I tried to help a friend who’s facing a crisis that includes financial challenges by sending a check to cover some of her unexpected, huge bills. She returned my check (along with a beautiful letter) because although the crisis is big, she couldn ’t accept the financial help. I found myself dejected. I totally understood her perspective. It’s hard to accept what feels to many like charity. Although we may be deeply charitable people ourselves, being the recipient of someone else’s help can feel like a burden, something we can’t ever “repay,” and for some, it can even feel humiliating. I called my friend and shared with her my dismay and sadness that she returned my check. I think I guilt-tripped her into accepting my gift – albeit in a different form that was more palatable to her – but what I tried to convey is that giving brings people joy (something she actually knew well as a giver to many over many years), and that it brought me great happiness to be able to help. We had a wonderful conversation – another gift – and I realized just how important it is not only to be generous and giving ourselves, but to receive with open arms the gifts of others.
I live in rural Maine, and two weekends ago we had a huge snowfall. One of my favorite things about snow is that no animal can escape its ability to perfectly mark tracks. Last week, my husband and I went snowshoeing in a wilderness area. We followed a fox trail for a long while, passing the trails of many small rodents — among them mice and squirrels. Next we came across porcupine trails –- a veritable Times Square of them –- followed by the tracks of a smallish member of the weasel family.
Here’s the answer to last post’s last riddle:
Here’s the answer to last post’s riddle:
Consider writing heartfelt letters to those on your list of gift recipients to share what you love and appreciate about them. Before you abandon this idea too quickly as too mushy or overly intimate, remember that such letters can recount stories about the person that made you laugh, gave you solace, helped you learn something. Being seen and appreciated is an extraordinary gift, and taking the time to share memories and gratitude is great for both you and the receiver.
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