Who Are Earthlings?

When we hear the word "Earthling" in our minds we immediately think of human beings. The truth is all beings on planet earth are "Earthlings". Think about it, they too inhabit the earth. In the dictionary the word means inhabiting the earth; mortal.

There is a documentary that I watched recently that gave me pause to think about the true meaning of what an earthling was. Again being the self absorbed beings that we are we think the word only refers to humans. All animals are inhabitants of Mother Earth and therefore also to be considered earthlings. It was really after hearing the quote in the movie that I had an epiphany about the roles each of us play on the earth. The following is a quote from the movie that made me stop and think about what the message truly was in this documentary.

"We need another and a wiser and perhaps a more mystical concept of animals...we patronize them for their incompleteness, for their tragic fate of them taking form so far beneath ourselves. And therein we err, we greatly err. For the animal shall not be measured by man. In a world older and more complex then our they move finished and complete, gifted with extensions of the senses we have lost or never attained, living by voices we shall never hear. They are not brethren, they are not underlings; they are nations, caught with ourselves in the net of life and time, fellow prisoners of the splendor and travail of the earth".
Henry Beston ~ Nature writer ~ from the book "The Outermost House"

I really felt the truth of this passage hit my heart. We judge so freely each other and those who are not like us, and as Beston says we greatly err when we do that. Their world is older and more complex than ours. We think we are a complex creature but we really are not, in fact we are very simple. We have lost those senses he talks about. Just as we have forgotten the language of the animals, telepathy. It is a language we have long forgotten. Animals on the other hand are in constant communication with everything! We as humans ask them to learn our language but fail to learn theirs in return. As hard as the film was to watch I did watch it to know and understand what is being done to animals in our name.

Think about any of the medicines you might be taking, you can thank an animal because more than likely that medicine was first tested on animals. They have given us food, clothing, shelter and stood by our side even after all of the atrocities committed against them. So think about them as a nation, a nation who has every right to be here just like us. Now don't get me wrong. I am not some PETA extremist. I am someone who views animals in a different way.

I see them as the beings who have it right. They are what we attain to be, spiritual beings having unconditional love for one another, connecting, communicating and honoring this place we call home, Mother Earth. Not all animals are living in this sense and I wonder how much of it has to do with our intrusion into their lives, taking not only their space on earth but also their bodies to do with them as we will.

I guess this has more to do with being grateful for all they give to us daily. We are not awake as a species and I can see that day coming to an end in the near future. Not doom and gloom but more of a reality check for all of us. There is a shift coming and the animals know it. More than likely they will be ready for it, I wonder if we will?

Happy Trails,
Sherry