All things from the shirt you’re wearing to the table you eat dinner on and the chair you sit in, the computer you type on to the ant on the sidewalk, the birds in the trees, and the dog or cat you share your home with; ALL things are energy. When someone has a lack of respect for one they have a lack of respect for ALL. Wow, heavy I know, and maybe just my opinion, but stay with me!

This baby is a Black Bellied Whistling Duck. With all it’s cuteness it’s super tiny and resembles a bumble bee in its color pattern – great for blending in which is exactly what it did when I stumbled upon this fuzz ball while walking the pastures at the farm. Actually had it not been for Winnie, my faithful companion pup, I would have never detected it was there. Winnie spotted “him” and sniffed him out alerting me to his presence. I honestly thought the little guy was dead. This baby duck, along with another one nearby flattened itself to the ground to blend in. How does it know to do that? Look up the adult version, they are a decent sized duck and no way was mom or dad showing them how to do this survival technique. Mom and Dad duck were nearby, but out of the direct vicinity so this baby and his sibling were protecting themselves by blending in to the environment to not attract a predator. Fascinating, I know.

Just like baby animals are born with an innate sense of what to do for survival, children come into the world with innate senses too. Children have a natural sense of wonder, love, curiosity, and being compassionate. They have an insatiable love for all things. Children don’t see the division of things – they see that all things are good, until and unless they are shown or told differently. Children know right and wrong in the treatment of others – people, animals, and things. They know love and kindness, tenderness, and joy – until they are taught differently.

I am not preaching from any specific platform, just sharing my own personal thoughts from experiences I have had living and contributing to this world for over 40 years. I am simply sharing that if someone destroys an object with a lack of respect for it’s presence and purpose in the world like stepping on an ant just because, kicking a dog, spitting at another human being or even calling them a name, it is a lack of respect which is a lack of kindness and love which leads to even more unkind behavior and thus exists a cruel unkind world. Who wants to exist there? Children who grow into adults making unkind and disrespectful decisions learned that unkind and disrespectful behavior somewhere in their childhood. I will preach that NO child is born with a cruel conscious. Seems dramatic, I know, but really spend time with young children and see the innocence within their souls. See the wonder that exists within their presence and surrounds their being – it’s pretty magical. I have spent countless hours teaching care and love for animals and the planet to children of all ages, and it’s the younger ones that intrigue me the most. They naturally get that kindness is the natural way to be. Just like the duckling, children are born with an innate knowing. Children fundamentally exist the way the entire world should exist – with kindness and love co-existing without any judgments.

I am a firm believer of education outreach and while data driven evidence is hard to come by, I have seen enough evidence with my own eyes and experience to know that teaching kids kindness in schools is a MUST. It’s not about one class visit, it’s about interweaving compassion into all things and following kids through all stages of growth to inspire them to choose love and kindness as they grow and are tainted by the things they see, learn, and experience in aging and living in a world full of unkind things. Let’s work together at the root of change – our children. By consistently sharing kindness and compassion with kids through all their development years, we can impact the future. Let’s bring more kindness, compassion, and love learning to every child for every stage of their growing years! Together we will inspire a more compassionate world for people, animals, and the planet. #BeKind

Contact Jessie with ideas, support, comments, or questions. Email jessie@epicanimals.org or call 904-274-1177 and let’s work together.